Antwerp’s AZ Monica hospital hit by cyber attack

Antwerp’s AZ Monica hospital was hit by a cyber attack on Tuesday, hospital officials confirmed. The attack affected computer systems at both campuses, in Deurne and Antwerp (Harmonie), and the problem was discovered around 6.30 am when staff noticed a serious IT failure, prompting the servers to be shut down as a safety measure. According to the Belgian News Agency, the public prosecutor has opened an investigation and the federal police’s cyber crime unit is on site.

Because staff cannot access electronic patient records, all non-urgent care has been postponed, with at least 70 planned operations cancelled and around 70 patients sent home; seven patients were moved to other hospitals as a precaution. Emergency care remains available but at a reduced level. It is not clear from the reporting whether any systems have been encrypted or whether the hospital received any ransom or extortion demand.