By REBECCA RUTHERFORD
Los Alamos
For the Los Alamos Daily Post

In a move proving that they are literally worse than blood sucking leeches, cyber criminals sunk to a new low and caught non-profit OneBlood in a ransomware attack. OneBlood is a non-profit blood center that provides blood to over 300 hospital partners. OneBlood serves the Southern US in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. They operate more than 90 donor centers and have a fleet of over 350 donation buses.

OneBlood is still operational, but operating under limited capacity. They have issued a critical call for donors, and the hospitals they serve have activated critical blood shortage protocols. This ransomware attack comes just weeks after the Florida government suffered an unrelated (that we know of) ransomware attack that compromised over 50,000 files.

Healthcare companies are a major target for ransomware attacks because they provide critical services and contain vast amounts of PII (personally identifiable information) and PHI (protected health information) to be breached. When you go to your healthcare provider, think of all the data you are giving them, it’s a target rich environment for cyber criminals. There is no information as to whether or not sensitive data has been breached in this incident, but it seems likely.

OneBlood is working with cybersecurity experts as they respond to and investigate this ransomware attack. Information as to how the attack occurred is limited, but it was very likely due to a phishing attack, or an exploited vulnerability. This is yet another reminder that everyone needs a comprehensive cybersecurity program that addresses vulnerability management, cyber awareness, and a holistic approach to cyber security.

Ransomware meme

Anyone who has made a blood donation to OneBlood recently is urged to keep an eye out for potential phishing scams, and to watch their credit for fraudulent activity.

Editor’s note: Rebecca Rutherford works in information technology at Los Alamos National Laboratory.