A patient in Germany has died after hackers targeted the hospital she was at in a shocking cyberattack.
The hackers targeted the IT systems in a major hospital in Dusseldorf hospital, meaning that a number of patients were moved to another hospital for treatment.
Sadly, the woman wasn’t able to be treated for an hour, and as a result she died.
This marks the first time a patient has died as a result of a cyberattack - albeit indirectly.
According to the hospital, investigators discovered that the source of the problem was a cyberattack on a weak spot in ‘widely used commercial add-on software.’
This meant that the hospital was unable to access its data, and patients had to be taken elsewhere.
An investigation has now been launched against the perpetrators on suspicion of negligent manslaughter.
Tim Erlin, VP at Tripwire, said: “When cyberattacks impact critical systems, there can be real-world consequences.
“We’re not used to thinking of cyberattacks in terms of life and death, but that was the case here. Delays in treatment, regardless of the cause, can be life-threatening.
“Ransomware doesn’t just suddenly appear on systems. It has to get there through exploited vulnerabilities, phishing, or other means.
“While we tend to focus on the ransomware itself, the best way to avoid becoming a victim is to prevent the infection in the first place.
“And the best way to prevent ransomware infections is to address the infection vectors by patching vulnerabilities, ensuring systems are configured securely, and preventing phishing."