Hackers have stolen the data of a large cosmetic surgery chain and they are threatening to publish patients’ before and after photos, among other details.
Hackers threaten to reveal before-and-after pics after data theft from cosmetic firms endorsed by celebs The Hospital Group, which has been endorsed by celebs including Kerry Katona and Joey Essex, confirmed the ransomware attack.
REvil, also known as Sodinokibi, is one of the most prolific ransomware groups. Its high-profile victims include currency exchange Travelex and entertainment law firm Grubman Shire Meiselas & Sacks.
They claim to have got their hands on more than 900 gigabytes of patient photographs.
Cybersecurity expert Reginald Andre talks about the incident and how to mitigate your risk in case you get the hack.
The Hospital Group claims to be the UK’s leading specialist weight loss and cosmetic surgery group.
It has 11 clinics specializing in bariatric weight loss surgery, breast enlargements, nipple corrections, and nose adjustments.
The company has previously promoted itself via celebrity endorsements, although it has not done so for several years. The Hospital Group is also known as the Transform Hospital Group.
Famous celebrities are also previous patients who have endorsed the clinic.
These are the stars name Atomic Kitten singer Kerry Katona, Shameless actress Tina Malone, and reality TV star Joey Essex from The Only Way is Essex.
Ransomware is one of the most prolific forms of cyber-attack. It typically involves hackers gaining access to a computer network and either encrypting files or locking users out of their systems until a ransom is paid.
Ransomware gangs have been taking a copy of the data and threatening to release it.
Law-enforcement agencies discourage victims from paying the ransom because doing so fuels criminal enterprises.
The Group of the hospital said in a brief statement, we can confirm that our Information Technology systems have been subject to a data security breach.
No one of our patients’ payment card details have been compromised but at this stage, we strictly understand that some of our patients’ personal data may have been accessed by hackers.
The company said it had emailed all its customers about the cyber-attack and would contact individuals who might have had more personal details compromised.
Thank you for reading. We hope this gives you a brief understanding of the latest news. Are you interested read about other latest technology-related news? Explore our Technology News blogs for more.
