Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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391. To ask the Minister for Health the measures he plans to take to prevent to the greatest extent possible the reoccurrence of a similar cyber-attack. [28664/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Improved security measures have already been put in place within my Department's IT systems. A complete security review of the ICT infrastructure is currently being finalised and specialised software has been installed to mitigate against malicious software, and to provide early warning notifications of same. The system is fully monitored, providing for a rapid response to any notified incidents.

My Department continues to liaise closely with the National Cyber Security Centre, the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, our security partner and with colleagues across the Public Service to ensure that best practice is followed as it relates to all aspects of cyber security.

In the wake of the recent ransomware attack, the Health Service Executive has deployed additional expertise, resources and technology to provide enhanced monitoring of systems and networks. This is considered an interim measure as they procure a permanent Security Operations Centre to provide security and threat incidence monitoring and response, including:

- Monitoring and alerting on portals and software;

- Monitoring and incident management of all devices on the network to ensure that all devices are compliant with rules/policies;

- Threat incident response including triage, close and/or escalation