A hacker group is in possession of at least a “small number” of patients’ data following a cyber-attack, NHS Dumfries and Galloway has said.
Reports emerged on Wednesday of a post by the group Inc Ransom on its darknet blog, alleging it had three terabytes of data from NHS Scotland, although the Scottish government said the incident had been contained to the one health board.
The post included a “proof pack” of some of the data, which has been confirmed by the board to be genuine.
The chief executive of the NHS board, Jeff Ace, said in a statement: “We absolutely deplore the release of confidential patient data as part of this criminal act.
“This information has been released by hackers to evidence that this is in their possession. We are continuing to work with Police Scotland, the National Cyber Security Centre, the Scottish government and other agencies in response to this developing situation.”
Patients whose data has been leaked will be contacted by the board, he said, while patient-facing services would continue as normal.
Ace said: “NHS Dumfries and Galloway is very acutely aware of the potential impact of this development on the patients whose data has been published, and the general anxiety which might result within our patient population.”
The board was hit by the cyber-attack earlier this month. It said earlier that the attack had put a “significant amount” of data at risk.
A police spokesperson said: “Police Scotland inquiries are continuing into a cyber-attack on NHS Dumfries and Galloway.”
A spokesperson for the National Cyber Security Centre said: “We are working with law enforcement, NHS Scotland and the Scottish government to fully understand the impact of an incident.”
A spokeswoman for the Scottish government said: “This incident remains contained to NHS Dumfries and Galloway and there have been no further incidents across NHS Scotland as a whole.
“The Scottish government is working with the health board, Police Scotland and other agencies, including the National Crime Agency and National Cyber Security Centre, to assess the level of this breach and the possible implications for individuals concerned.”
