Hollywood hospital becomes ransomware attack victimFebruary 16, 2016 - 07:50 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Computer systems at Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center have been offline for more than a week following a ransomware attack, BBC News reports. According to local news sources, hackers were said to have demanded $3.4mln to provide the codes to unlock the stolen data. The hospital has confirmed the attack took place, but has not commented on the ransom. A voicemail message at the hospital reassures patients that medical records had not been accessed by the hackers. Investigations into the source of the attack - which hospital officials said appeared to be random rather than targeted at the facility - are being conducted by the FBI, Los Angeles Police and computer forensics experts hired by the hospital. The hospital insists that day-to-day operations have not been impacted, although many tasks normally carried out on computer are now being done on paper, much to the frustration of staff. Patients are also being told they must travel to pick up medical test results in person rather than receive them electronically. Ransomware attacks are increasingly common, and are difficult to fully protect against. Malicious software is placed on a computer - often via phishing attacks - and proceed to lock up files. Ransomware will typically try to extort money from the user quickly, saying that if the demand is not met, the files will be deleted. The most common type of ransomware is a malware package known as Cryptolocker, which experts say has infected hundreds of thousands of machines around the world. Related links: Top stories Yerevan will host the 2024 edition of the World Congress On Information Technology (WCIT). Rustam Badasyan said due to the lack of such regulation, the state budget is deprived of VAT revenues. Krisp’s smart noise suppression tech silences ambient sounds and isolates your voice for calls. Gurgen Khachatryan claimed that the "illegalities have been taking place in 2020." Partner news Most popular in the section | The Power of One Dram to benefit Road of Life charity The companies inform that the May beneficiary of The Power of One Dram is the “Road of Life” charitable organization. Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. Aliyev says no need for mediators in Armenia-Azerbaijan process Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev believes that Baku and Yerevan do not mediators in the process of normalizing relations. |