NHS cybersecurity breach advice

If you’ve been the victim of an NHS cybersecurity breach, it’s important to know what you can do in terms of your rights for legal justice.

The NHS is a huge target for cybercriminals, and a lot of this stems from a lack of infrastructure and investment. It takes the government to ensure that the NHS is properly equipped to defend itself in the digital age, and it appears that they’re still falling short.

For the victims whose information is misused and / or compromised, it’s important to know what can be done when it comes to medical data breach compensation claims.

Huge NHS cybersecurity breach risks

The risk of an NHS cybersecurity breach is huge. We know that there’s an abundance of outdated computers and systems being used, and these can be more vulnerable to being successfully attacked.

Simply put, outdated systems aren’t always equipped with the latest security technology which can leave them vulnerable to being compromised.

We saw this from the 2017 WannaCry incident. That particular software targeted older and outdated systems that are easier to breach, and it hit the NHS hard.

A lack of skilled workers

A lack of investment can mean that older systems and equipment is still being relied on, which means the possibility of an NHS cybersecurity breach can be potentiality high.

But it doesn’t stop there.

Last year, a Freedom of Information request reportedly found that almost a quarter of NHS Trusts don’t have employees with sufficient security qualifications. This indicates a lack of skilled workers who can help to ensure that the NHS can defend against attacks, and ensure that leaks and breaches internally can be prevented also.

The impact of an NHS cybersecurity breach

The impact of an NHS cybersecurity breach simply cannot be understated.

We can tell you from years of experience and with thousands of people coming to us for help that NHS data breach compensation claims are incredibly common. But the impact for the victims is often severe because we’re talking about personal and sensitive medical information that people don’t want to be shared around.

And once it’s exposed, it’s out there. We saw in the 56 Dean Street leak we’re dealing with just how bad the impact of medical data exposure can be when the HIV statuses for hundreds of patients was accidentally shared.

We continue to fight for justice for victims of that leak, which is one of the dozens of data group and multi-party actions we’re involved in.

Justice is important

When you consider the extent of the distress and suffering that can be caused by an NHS cybersecurity breach, you can see why justice for the victims is important.

That’s why we do what we do.

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