Cyberattack strikes hospital that serves Navajo Nation

The Associated Press
This May 8, 2020, photo shows Rehoboth McKinley Christian Hospital in Gallup, N.M. Of about 500 medical and support staff, at least 32 hospital workers have become infected, and doctors and nurses say that they all live with the fear of spreading the virus to their colleagues and relatives.[AP Photo/Morgan Lee]

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A pandemic-besieged hospital on the edge of the Navajo Nation says it has been the focus of a cyberattack.

The nonprofit operator of Rehoboth McKinley Christian Hospital in Gallup on Thursday issued a brief statement acknowledging “unauthorized activity” on its computer network.

Hospital spokeswoman Ina Burmeister says hospital operators have hired private investigators and taken other undisclosed measures to prevent further unauthorized activity.

A wave of digital assaults has been taking U.S. health care providers hostage as they contend with the COVID-19 pandemic.

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