Anonymous's Latest Target: Boston Children's Hospital 329
Brandon Butler writes: "Supporters of the faceless collective known as Anonymous have taken up the cause of a young girl, after the State of Massachusetts removed her from her parents earlier this year. However, the methods used to show support may have unintended consequences, which could impact patient care. On Thursday, the Boston Children's Hospital confirmed that they were subjected to multiple DDoS attacks over the Easter holiday. Said attacks, which have continued throughout the week, aim to take the hospital's website offline. Similar attacks, including website defacement, have also targeted the Wayside Youth and Family Support Network. Both organizations are at the heart of a sensitive topic, child welfare and the rights of a parent."
Members of Anonymous are now calling for a halt to the attacks.
Re:which could impact patient care (Score:3, Interesting)
Yes, it could.
1. Most hospitals are operating at a loss, thus do not have money to maintain a strong infrastructure. Meaning that website could be on the same pipe as the rest of the organization.
2. The web sites now offer more services to patients and other providers. Such as logging in and able to send their Medical Records, Book and Appointment, or securely send a message to your doctor.
3. If you kill the Router (That devices that will need to direct you to the website) as the device wouldn't expect that type of load, it causes problems with other places it is trying to work with. As the software will often need to talk to other locations. For example Lab work is often done at different locations then sent over to your Dr. for review. If the network goes down the Dr. may not get the results.
In short you do not know how things are connected, and could be combined with other things that you don't expect.
To say, It is only a website doesn't mean DDoS the site will not cause other problems.
Re:What we would like to know (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:What we would like to know (Score:4, Interesting)
The family's own doctor selected a course of treatment _without_ performing the standard diagnostic test to indicate the condition. Also, this family went forum-shopping for a doctor until they found one that gave the diagnosis they wanted.
On the surface this looks like a classic case of Münchausen syndrome by proxy. Other clues--the hospital said that the girl seemed less tense when her parents weren't around.
I was taken away from my alcoholic mother for a year. I met two other kids (brother and sister) while in foster care whose parents pimped them out.
It's a drastic measure to take kids away from their parents, but the kids will survive, whether it turns out to have been warranted or not. Calm the f* down.
Re:What we would like to know (Score:4, Interesting)
It seems odd that she still hasn't had a muscle biopsy to confirm the diagnosis because of concerns over pain and anesthesia even though she's already had surgery to insert a port into her digestive tract.
Already affecting patients (Score:4, Interesting)
Another possibility you haven't thought of (Score:3, Interesting)
Everyone agrees that there is something wrong with the child.
The problem is that the parents are fixated on a specific disease which clinical tests do not support. So instead of trying to find out what's really wrong with her, the parents went looking for another doctor who would give them the diagnosis they want [clevelandclinic.org]. Think about that.
Re:What we would like to know (Score:3, Interesting)
The hospital pretty much does not believe in Mitochondrial disease. Just as many didn't believe in fibromylangia or Lyme disease.
And instead claim "she is just crazy..."
They might as well say the reason your daughter can't walk anymore is because she is a teenage girl and suffers from hysteria.