Russian man linked to deadly London hospitals hack arrested

German police have arrested a 28-year-old Russian man named Vladimir K in Japan, accusing him of being a core member of the Qilin cyber-crime gang. Qilin is alleged to have hacked over 4,000 organizations since 2024, extorting more than $140 million. The suspect is suspected of being involved in the ransomware attack on blood testing company Synnovis in June 2024, which disrupted pathology services across several London hospitals.

This was the first cyber attack in history to be directly linked to a death, with a patient dying unexpectedly at King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. The trust stated multiple factors contributed to the patient's death, including a prolonged wait for blood test results. The Synnovis attack disrupted over 10,000 appointments and caused weeks of disruption, with hackers threatening to publish the data unless a ransom was paid.

They eventually published the data online after no ransom was paid. At the time, Qilin claimed the hack was to protest the UK's lack of support in the Russian war on Ukraine, though their claims were dismissed. Qilin has been linked to numerous criminal hacks targeting various organizations, including schools, hospitals, companies, councils, and health organizations.