Surviving a cyber attack - A blood service's tale

¹IT, Western Cape Blood Service, Cape Town, South Africa

In 2021, the Western Cape Blood Service (WCBS) was the target of a vicious cyber-attack that brought IT services to a grinding halt. As the only blood service that operates in the Western Cape province of South Africa, WCBS is responsible for the provision of safe blood products to approximately 7 million inhabitants. Reliant on IT services for the entire blood supply chain, the attack could have had a disastrous impact on patients needing lifesaving treatment.

While manual processes were in place in the event of system downtime, manual processes are always less efficient and more time consuming then automated processes, despite being performed by skilled, experienced and competent people who are committed to providing a safe and adequate blood supply.

The talk will provide insights into how a crisis can suddenly unfold and what steps were taken to deal with the crisis from the following perspectives:-IT technical and non-technical;-Organisational response;-Communication.

You will hear from people that were in the blood banks, from people responsible for testing and from the board of directors. The audience will walk away with a sense that a crisis is also an opportunity for people to come together and shine, that every cloud has a silver lining and that good can overcome evil.