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A ransomware attack has taken the life of a cow and its calf in Switzerland after a farmer’s systems were breached by threat actors.
A cow and a calf were both killed as a result of the attack, which prevented small farmer Vital Bircher from Hagendorn, Switzerland, from checking the vitals of his animals.
Bircher first noticed problems with his milking systems when he wasn’t receiving data on his cows being milked. He was then informed by the manufacturer of his milking systems that a ransomware attack had taken place, in which his data had been compromised, and threat actors were demanding $10,000.
Initially, Bircher decided not to pay the ransomware group, as he could work with his 70 cows without his milking data, as the milking robots are able to operate without an internet connection by design, in case of internet outages and other issues.
However, the system also gives farmers feedback on cows that are pregnant. As a result, a calf of one of the cows was put in peril without Bircher’s knowledge, and it eventually died.
Bircher, still unaware that one of his cows had a dead calf in its womb, now had a mother cow at risk.
“We tried everything to save the mother, but in the end, we had to put her down,” he said.
Bircher estimated that the cost of the incident was 6,000 Swiss francs, roughly US$6,880, all to cover vet fees and the price of a new computer.
The threat actor, who ended up without its ransom payment, is yet to be identified.
The attack also raises attention to the dangers ransomware and other malicious cyber attacks present for humans. A ransomware attack that cripples medical facilities and their systems could and has taken human life.
According to a 2023 research paper by the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health, between 42 and 67 US Medicare patients passed away between 2016 and 2021 as a result of ransomware attacks.
Again, a ransomware attack on a hospital in Alabama resulted in the death of Nicko Silar in 2019, a baby who was born with her umbilical cord restricting her airway around her neck.
The ransomware attack prevented doctors from noticing changes in fetal heart rate, which would usually have pushed for a cesarean section birth.
She passed away nine months after being born.
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