Cyber attack at Ahmedabad hospital, hackers demand bitcoins worth USD 70000
Ahmedabad: In a recent incident of cyber attack, the servers of a KD hospital located on the outskirts of the city were hit by a ransomware attack with the hackers demanding Bitcoin worth USD 70,000 to decrypt the data.
Servers of a private multi-speciality hospital here have come under a ransomware attack with the hackers demanding Bitcoin worth USD 70,000 to restore data, police said.
Based on a complaint filed by K D Hospital, located on the outskirts of the city, a First Information Report (FIR) for extortion was registered at Bopal police station on Tuesday, said an official.
As per a recent media report in The Indian Express, The FIR has been lodged under IPC Sections 384(extortion), 511 (moral guilt and injury) and IT Sections 43 (penalty and compensation for damage to computer, computer system) and 66 (computer related offence). Following a complaint from an IT official, Kishor Gojiya, an FIR was registered.
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“Through an email, the hackers demanded USD 70,000 in Bitcoin to restore the encrypted data and also offered a `discount’ if the hospital agreed to cough up the amount,” said police inspector A P Chaudhari.
The attack came to notice in the early hours of May 13 when night-shift supervisors noticed that the software on the hospital’s computers and its servers was not working, the FIR said.
Soon, the hospital’s IT head arrived on the scene and realised that hackers had installed a ransomware virus which had encrypted all data of the hospital and patients.
Dr Parth Desai, Chief Operating Officer, KD Hospital, was informed and help was sought from NFSU, Gandhinagar.
The hackers then sent a communication on one of the computers saying that all the files have been encrypted and downloaded on their servers.
A top source in the hospital informed, “Our servers – containing all our software – were down for a day but we worked manually. The servers are now up and running. We got another server for backup. The healthcare services were not affected. An NFSU (National Forensic Sciences University) team and cyber crime police are also investigating the matter. It will take another week for the audit report.
In an email sent to the hospital on May 13, the hackers demanded ransom in Bitcoin.
It was followed by another email in the early hours of Tuesday which offered a discount if the hospital agreed to pay, the FIR said.
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