UMC trauma center in Texas - the only one in a 400-mile radius - hit by ransomware attack, ambulances redirected

A ransomware attack has impacted the University Medical Center (UMC) in Lubbock, Texas, and it's pretty serious - forcing the hospital to divert ambulances to other facilities. The attack, which hit on Friday, has limited operations and affected emergency services, though most are still up and running. As a precaution, UMC is redirecting both emergency and non-emergency patients while the hospital is working with external cybersecurity specialists to restore its systems and determine the full scope of the attack. UMC has not disclosed whether they are cooperating with federal authorities, though the FBI often assists with ransomware recovery and negotiations.

UMC is the only level-one trauma center in a 400-mile radius, which is why this disruption is particularly dangerous for critically ill patients. The hospital detected unusual activity in its IT system and promptly disconnected the affected network.

While UMC has declined to offer further details, the attack reflects a broader trend of increasing ransomware attacks on healthcare facilities. Such attacks have risen in number lately, with two-thirds of healthcare providers experiencing an attack and many paying to restore their systems. It's not just healthcare systems, too - Stanford University was hit by a ransomware attack last year, and another attack hit the production department of a Foxconn factory in Mexico in 2022. Furthermore, experts have issued warnings that healthcare institutions could remain a prime target due to the sensitive nature of patient data and the critical need for system uptime.