DEVON’S biggest hospital is now ‘back to normal’ after being affected by last Friday’s global hacker attack.

Bosses at Derriford in Plymouth said they had problems with their computer systems on Friday night but by Saturday morning patients were being asked to go to the hospital as normal for their appointments. 

Derriford was one of a number of NHS hospitals across the country hit by malware called Wanna Decryptor. The bug prevented staff from accessing computer systems and warned that files would be deleted unless money was paid. 

The attack saw some hospitals and GPs across the country unable to offer anything but emergency care.  Some staff had been forced to revert to pen and paper and use their own mobiles after the attack affected key systems, including telephones. 

Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, including Torbay and Newton Abbot Hospitals, was not affected by the attack. 

A spokesman for the trust said: ‘The NHS is currently experiencing issues due to the recent cyber-attack on May 12. Services provided by this Trust have not been impacted – please attend the hospital as normal.’ 

And the Northern, Eastern and Western (NEW) Devon Clinical Commissioning Group, which includes the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, said it had also been unaffected by the attack.

A spokesman for the group said: ‘Following reports of a number of cyber attacks on NHS sites across the country, our IT provider has carried out an investigation of CCG and GP IT systems. 

‘There is no evidence that NEW Devon CCG, or our associated GP practices, have been affected by the cyber attack. 

‘Our IT provider deploy state-of-the-art security systems to prevent and block attacks such as this.   

‘Our security partners have been closely monitoring the situation and will continue to do so. 

‘NHS Digital, which manages all NHS email, is working closely with the National Cyber Security Centre, the Department of Health and NHS England to support affected organisations and ensure patient safety is protected.’ 

A spokesman for NHS Digital said: ‘At this stage we do not have any evidence that patient data has been accessed. 

‘We will continue to work with affected organisations to confirm this.’ 

He added the attack ‘was not specifically targeted at the NHS and is affecting organisations from across a range of sectors’.