‘We were asleep at the wheel; this is the wake-up call’

Experts say the breach of the HSE’s information technology systems must act as a final warning for the state to prioritise cybersecurity defences. So what needs to be done, and how vulnerable is Ireland to another crippling cyber attack?

The NCSC, the state body with lead authority for defending the country’s critical infrastructure from cyber attacks, was operating on a “shoestring budget”. Picture: Getty

Eamon Ryan was a little over a fortnight into his second stint as Minister for Communications when he rose in the Dáil last July to outline Ireland’s cybersecurity capabilities.

“First and foremost, our preparation for cyber attacks has improved. I have returned to the same ministry where I was ten years ago. At that time, a single individual was working on an informal basis, as much as anything else, to protect our systems,” he said.