OneBlood, a blood donation center that services hundreds of hospitals across the southeastern United States, is experiencing a ransomware event that’s limiting the organization’s software systems.
The organization said it’s remaining operational to collect, test and distribute blood, but there's going to be delays in getting that blood to hospitals.
“OneBlood takes the security of our network extremely seriously,” said Susan Forbes, OneBlood senior vice president of corporate communications and public relations, in a Wednesday press release. “Our comprehensive response efforts are ongoing, and we are working diligently to restore full functionality to our systems as expeditiously as possible.”
The delays are due to the loss of automated systems from the cyberattack, which is hurting turnaround times and inventory capacity.
In response, the organization has asked the more than 250 hospitals it serves to start their critical blood shortage protocols and keep them active until the software issues are resolved.
Thomas Hyslip, an assistant professor in the Cybercrime program in the University of South Florida Criminology Department, said cybersecurity threats like this are becoming increasingly prevalent in health care and other key sectors.
"Healthcare in general has been hit pretty hard in the last few years,” Hyslip said. “It's because it's such a critical infrastructure, they're going to be more likely to pay the ransom quickly to get back up online, rather than risk being down for a long time.”
Other blood centers across the country have begun assisting OneBlood by coordinating efforts to provide additional blood products until restoration efforts are complete.
The organization is urging those eligible to donate to make an appointment as soon as possible.
You can find out more information about donating blood through OneBlood here.
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