Ireland's health authorities remove all external access to IT network

Ireland's health authorities said on Saturday that they have taken further action to protect its IT network following a major ransomware attack on Britain's National Health Service (NHS).

In a statement, Ireland's Health Service Executive (HSE) said they have decided to remove all external access to its IT network, adding that access to external email has been removed from all threatened and targeted devices.

The HSE is responsible for the provision of health and personal social services for everyone living in Ireland.

The HSE said there are approximately 1,500 devices that are considered either threatened or targeted devices. This includes devices that deliver diagnostic imaging and bio-medical device control machines.

Currently, the HSE is working closely with the organizations that deliver technology to the health system regarding assurance and levels of preparedness.

It said anti-virus updates are currently being installed in these devices and a process of testing is underway.

As there are nearly 1,500 devices, it is expected that this process will take a number of days to complete, according to the HSE.

On Friday, Britain's NHS was hit by a wide scale cyber attack, causing failures of its IT systems. So far, Ireland hasn't received reports of any similar incidents across the country.

The ransomware attack, boiling down to a computer virus that makes users' computers useless unless a payment is made to those who hacked their system, has prompt wide alarm around the globe. Enditem