Practical examples from Germany:
University Hospital Düsseldorf. In September 2020, the University Hospital of Düsseldorf fell victim to a ransomware attack. The attack significantly disrupted the hospital's operations, and one patient had to be transferred to another hospital due to the IT failure and died.
Heise Publishing. In 2016, the renowned Heise Verlag, known for its specialist IT publications, was hit by a ransomware attack. Fortunately, the publisher was able to fend off the attack without causing any major damage and restore its data.
Norsk Hydro Germany. One of the world's largest aluminum producers, Norsk Hydro, was hit by a ransomware attack in March 2019. The production facilities in Germany and other countries were severely affected. Despite facing significant financial losses, the company refused to pay the ransom and instead chose to restore its systems from backups.
City administration of Frankfurt am Main. In December 2019, the city administration of Frankfurt am Main fell victim to a ransomware attack, which resulted in the city's IT network having to be temporarily shut down. While the exact details of the attack were not fully released, it was a clear example of how vulnerable even large and well-resourced organizations can be.
Practical examples from smaller German companies