GARDAÍ HAVE URGED people who think they may have been impacted by the recent cyber attack on the HSE to contact their local Garda station.

It comes as the Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau (GNCCB) is continuing to investigate the ransomware attack on the HSE last Friday.

The HSE last night secured a High Court injunction that would make it a criminal offence for anyone to disclose, trade or use the information. A decryption key was also provided to the HSE to help unlock the agency’s IT system.

Gardaí have said that it is not yet certain whether the reports about peoples personal records and data being circulated online are genuine yet.

However, they have said that it is probable and a feature of these kinds of attacks.

Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said earlier today that some patient data from the HSE had leaked online on the “dark net”.

“On the face of it, as has been reported, data from the HSE does appear to have been displayed on the dark net. The details of that are not something that would be confirmed because it’s an ongoing Garda investigation,” said Donnelly, speaking to Newstalk Breakfast.

Speaking to reporters this evening, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that it was always a possibility that data could be dumped online since the attack took place last week, but that the High Court injunction will make it more difficult for those looking to access the data.

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“With the High Court injunction the HSE secured is a very powerful and strong one which makes it a criminal act to reveal any data that has been illegally obtained or stolen from the HSE system,” said Martin.

The Taoiseach also thanked social media companies who have cooperated with the State for promising to take down any of the information if it is dumped online by the attackers.

The Gardaí are also assuring those who have concerns about their data being breached, that their cases will be handled by specialist investigators and done in a sensitive manner.

Currently, advice from Gardaí remains that if you are contacted by anyone stating to have your personal information or are looking for your bank details, you should not engage.