Champaign-Urbana Public Health District in Illinois and a hospital in the Czech Republic were both hit this month Hackers targeting health care organizations have compromised computer networks and disrupted patient care—in one case hobbling the Czech Republic’s second-biggest hospital for almost two weeks—as the new coronavirus pandemic already tests the limits of health-care systems around the globe.
Medical systems and hospitals rely heavily on technology to access patient records, diagnose illnesses and operate hospital equipment.
They have been frequent targets during cyberattacks in the past—including a Europe-wide ransomware attack that paralyzed some U.K.