University of New Mexico Health System hit by cybersecurity breach

The University of New Mexico (UNM) Health System is facing a significant cybersecurity issue that has forced the diversion of ambulance traffic and the cancellation of appointments across more than 30 facilities.

As the state’s only Level I Trauma Center, the UNM hospital in Albuquerque is the only facility within a 400-mile radius certified to treat the most critically injured patients. Due to the breach, the network has instructed patients not to visit UNM Health facilities and has redirected emergency services to other regional providers.

Employees received alerts regarding a ‘network security breach,’ with instructions to unplug all desktop computers and disconnect mobile devices from the hospital Wi-Fi. While officials are actively working to resolve the issue, there is currently no estimate for when full operations will resume. Reports indicate that staff observed messages on computers suggesting a potential data theft.