Russian cybercriminals are behind a ransomware attack that triggered a critical incident and halted operations and tests across major London NHS hospitals, according to the former chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).
King’s College Hospital (pictured), Guy’s and St Thomas’ – including the Royal Brompton and the Evelina London Children’s Hospital – and primary care services are among those affected.
GP services across Bexley, Greenwich, Lewisham, Bromley, Southwark and Lambeth boroughs have also been affected, according to the BBC.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Wednesday, Martin said: “We believe it is a Russian group of cybercriminals who call themselves Qilin.
“These criminal groups – there are quite a few of them – they operate freely from within Russia, they give themselves high-profile names, they’ve got websites on the so-called dark web, and this particular group has about a two-year history of attacking various organisations across the world.
“They’ve done automotive companies, they’ve attacked the Big Issue here in the UK, they’ve attacked Australian courts. They’re simply looking for money.”
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The NCSC is investigating the impact of the cyberattack along with NHS officials. Synnovis said the incident had been reported to the police and the information commissioner.
The health secretary, Victoria Atkins, reportedly wrote on X on Wednesday: “Throughout yesterday I had meetings with NHS England and the National Cyber Security Centre to oversee the response to the cyber-attack on pathology services in south-east London.
“My absolute priority is patient safety and the safe resumption of services in the coming days.”
Last week it emerged that Norfolk’s largest hospital was forced to pay out almost £47,000 in compensation following data breaches.
The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital paid £46,875 to the victims of five separate data breaches between 2020 and 2023.
The figure is the second largest of any NHS trust in the country, according to newly published statistics.
