Ransomware Attack Shuts Down Emergency Rooms Across Four States

A ransomware attack on Prospect Medical Holdings had life-threatening implications last week as hospitals in four states were forced to shut down emergency rooms and divert ambulances to alternative facilities.

Prospect Medical Holdings (Prospect) describes the attack as a “data security incident that has disrupted our operations”. Shortly after the initial detection on August 3^rd, Prospect formally disclosed the incident.

Once the incident was detected, Prospect immediately took their systems offline, which caused emergency rooms and clinics in their system to shut down operations in 16 hospitals across Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, California and Connecticut – creating a ripple effect on ambulance routes, hospital volumes and most importantly, patients.

According to reports, the impacted Pennsylvania facilities are primarily in the Philadelphia region, including Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Upland, Taylor Hospital in Ridley Park, Delaware County Memorial Hospital in Drexel Hill and Springfield Hospital in Springfield.

While some hospitals operated through the attack using pen and paper, some facilities estimated it may take at least a week to completely recover.

In addition to emergency rooms shutting down, the attack also reportedly disrupted key operations, including outpatient appointments, surgical procedures, blood drives and ambulance routes. Elective surgeries and urgent care in Connecticut were also halted, according to the Eastern Connecticut Health Network, as well as podiatry, wound care, women's wellness and gastroenterology services.

This attack is a staunch reminder that the healthcare industry will always have a target on their back as outages like this put human lives at risk. The attack directly prevented the availability of emergency health services while simultaneously straining resources at other facilities due to rerouting ambulances and patients.

Thankfully, there are no reports of the attack causing any deaths or complications; however, it is eerily reminiscent of the Duesseldorf University Hospital incident that resulted in one death due to emergency services being unavailable, as well as the CommonSpirit Health attack this past October that resulted in similar system outages and hospital closures.

The FBI and White House are currently investigating the incident, and as of the publication of this article, no ransomware group has taken credit for the attack.

Ransomware on the Rise in 2023

This attack also dispels the optimism around the idea that ransomware was on the decline due to a decrease in reported ransomware attacks and payments in 2022.

In fact, 2023 is forecasted to be one of the largest years for ransomware revenue, as  recent reports show ransomware victims’ payments totaled nearly $449 million in the first half of 2023 – in comparison to 2022, which didn’t even reach $500 million.

And even if there is a decline in the volume of attacks, at some point, the healthcare industry will most likely still be a top target due to the dangerous impact an outage can have.

About Schneider Downs Cybersecurity

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