ALDER Hey Children’s Hospital has said it is working to “secure its systems” after claims that data was stolen and published online illegally.

On Thursday (November 28) the hospital confirmed that it was aware that data had been taken from its systems shared by Alder Hey and Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

It has been reported that ransomware gang, The INC Ransom group, claims to have stolen data including the personal information of patients, donations from benefactors and procurement information and has published screenshots of data on the dark web.

In a statement, the trust said it was working with the National Crime Agency as well as partner organisations to verify if the data had been published and to “secure” its systems.

The statement read: “We are aware that data has been published online and shared via social media that purports to have been obtained illegally from systems shared by Alder Hey and Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

“We are working with partners to verify the data that has been published and to understand the potential impact.

“We are taking this issue very seriously and are working with the National Crime Agency as well as partner organisations to secure our systems and to take further steps in line with law enforcement advice as well as our statutory duties relating to patient data.

“This incident is not linked to the ongoing incident at Wirral University Teaching Hospitals.

“Our services are operating as normal, and patients should attend appointments as usual.”