A mole map interrupted as cyberattack barrage continues

2022 saw a barrage of ransomware attacks against healthcare providers, and many of their patients remain in frustrated suspense as we enter 2023.

Anne* – a previous melanoma sufferer – has had her moles mapped
for the past five years.

An annual head-to-toe Naevus mole mapping by Hamilton Skin Cancer Centre identified any suspicious spots that appeared on her skin since the last round of imaging.

This week, she got a rude shock when she discovered the centre had lost access to previous scans for its Naevus Mole Mapping system.

A “cyber incident” last October saw 10,000 images of skin lesions and moles – including any backups – compromised.

“Patients who previously had melanoma and were mapping moles as a precaution will now not have images from past years to compare with if they present with a suspicious mole. I am a patient now in this position,” Anne told the Herald.

A spokeswoman for Hamilton Skin Cancer Centre told the Herald the centre was working with police to retrieve the files. The centre is “hopeful” it will regain access to the 10,000 patient files.

She would not name the third-party IT provider that hosted the centre’s systems, not comment on whether ransomware was involved “due to this being an ongoing police investigation”.

There were no printouts – which she said were not practical given the “granular resolution” of the imaging used for the mole mapping. New systems have been put in place since the October attack, including new backup procedures.

The centre contacted all affected patients in October by email or letter, including an email sent to Anne (which the patient never received – it’s presumed to have been caught in her spam filter).

A story in the media in October relayed patient fears body images could appear on the dark web – where ransomware attackers post “taster” files in a bid to pressure a victim into paying up.

That story emerged after the centre posted an online update that included the line: “Unfortunately our image storage system was affected, which means the third…