North Korean hackers use Killware attacks on public healthcare facilities


Cyber attacks are a genuine fear for most people in the online age, but the recent wave of extreme online attacks are getting worse. In a new series of attacks, North Korean hackers have been accused of attacking numerous healthcare providers.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, these reports also claim that the hackers have been attacking these healthcare providers since May 2021. The group also show no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

More Killware?

Previous attacks from North Korean hackers were dubbed “killware” since these are cyber attacks that were designed to cause harm toward people. This form of hacking has locked up electronic health records services, diagnostics services, imaging services, and intranet services for these providers.

Due to how these cyber attacks can cause a lot of pain for these healthcare workers, the North Korean hackers tend to demand payment to stop the killware attacks. However, the police have said that they shouldn’t give into these demands since there’s no guarantee that they will stop with the Killware.

"The North Korean state-sponsored cyber actors likely assume healthcare organizations are willing to pay ransoms because these organizations provide services that are critical to human life and health," said the officers.

Read More: ‘Iron Man’ Power Armour and robot dogs coming to Korean police

How to defend yourself

While the attacks from these North Korean hackers have been dangerous, law enforcement has come up with some obvious countermeasures. Healthcare workers were advised to keep offline copies of their important documents concocting a basic cyber incident response plan. It’s not yet clear if this will be enough but it’s better than nothing.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like there are plans to stop these cyber attacks anytime soon. The report from Engadget claims that North Korea is using the ransom money to fund its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, so things aren’t getting any better.

For more articles like this, take a look at our Cyberattacks and News page.