UPDATE 10/7/21: Johnson Memorial Health has received a demand for ransom after the cyber attack that occurred Friday night after 10:30 p.m. The contents of the demand are not being released. The hospital remains open, and healthcare providers are depending on paper to record patient information since the computer system is down.
Original story:
FRANKLIN — Johnson Memorial Health was the victim of a cyberattack, the healthcare system announced on Saturday.
The attack disabled its computer network, but the healthcare system says it's prepared to continue to deliver care without access to computer records.
It's working with cybersecurity partners and law enforcement officials to investigate the incident.
Chris Bavender, public affairs specialist for the FBI Indianapolis Field Office, confirmed the FBI is assisting with the incident.
"While we are working quickly to resolve the impact of the cyberattack, we recognize that these situations can take time to fully resolve," the statement from Johnson Memorial Health read.
You can read the full statement from the healthcare system below.
Breaking: @MyJMHealth releases statement regarding cyberattack. @wrtv pic.twitter.com/sgBqcCJBWV
— Rafael Sánchez (@RafaelOnTV) October 2, 2021
On Sunday, IT experts went to the healthcare system to determine the scope of the cyberattack.
New: IT experts are now @MyJMHealth to determine the scope of cyberattack. Initially, it’s being described as “a very “complicated matter” with “multiple layers.” The hospital is focused on patient care services & preparing for doctors’ offices to open on Monday. @wrtv pic.twitter.com/xlI4UGTPfB
— Rafael Sánchez (@RafaelOnTV) October 3, 2021
In a statement on Sunday, the healthcare system recommended all patients arrive early for their appointments as the registration process might be slower than normal.
"At this time, no appointments or surgeries have been canceled and we ask all patients scheduled to receive services Monday to report to JMH as normal," the statement read. "We do recommend patients arrive a bit earlier than usual, as registration processes may be slower than on a typical day. We thank all our patients and visitors for their patience as we continue to recover from this event.”
This is the latest cyberattack targeting a healthcare system in Indiana in recent months.
On Friday, Eskenazi Health announced health and personal information stolen in a cyberattack earlier this year was put onto the dark web.
"The threat of cyberattacks is a nationwide problem that, unfortunately, has affected other hospitals here in Indiana and across the country," the statement from Johnson Memorial Health wrote. "JMH has invested heavily in cybersecurity, and we continue to be vigilant."
