Security News > 2022 > February > HHS: Conti ransomware encrypted 80% of Ireland's HSE IT systems
A threat brief published by the US Department of Health and Human Services on Thursday paints a grim picture of how Ireland's health service, the HSE, was overwhelmed and had 80% of its systems encrypted during last year's Conti ransomware attack.
"The HSE did not have a single responsible owner for cybersecurity, at senior executive or management level at the time of the incident. There was no dedicated committee that provided direction and oversight of cybersecurity and the activities required to reduce the HSE's cyber risk exposure," the HHS Cybersecurity Program said.
"The lack of a cybersecurity forum in the HSE hindered the discussion and documentation of granular cyber risks, as well as the abilities to identify and deliver mitigating controls. The HSE did not have a centralized cybersecurity function that managed cybersecurity risk and controls."
"The impact of the ransomware on the IT environment was reported by the HSE's management to lead to 80% encryption," the HHS added.
"The impact of the ransomware attack on communications was severe, as the HSE almost exclusively used on-premise email systems that were encrypted, and therefore unavailable, during the attack."
Luckily, the Conti ransomware gang gave the HSE a free decryptor to restore systems, with the added warning that the attackers would still sell or publish the stolen data if the HSE did not pay a $20 million ransom.