University Hospitals keeps MyChart, websites offline after unusual server activity
University Hospitals in Cleveland, Ohio, disconnected its systems from the internet after detecting 'unusual activity' on servers on Thursday, October 22; MyChart and its websites remain down. The hospital says patient care has not been disrupted but expects digital services to be affected for several days, and the nature of the incident remains unconfirmed. Ideastream notes that Quest Diagnostics, which runs outpatient labs at the hospital, disclosed a cyber attack with access to 'certain patient records,' with no confirmed link to this case.
What happened
University Hospitals, a Cleveland-area health system, disconnected its systems from the internet after detecting 'unusual activity' on servers. Websites and the MyChart patient portal went down on Thursday, October 22. In a statement, the hospital called the move an abundance of caution and said patient care continues normally.
Why it matters
Patients lost online access to records and results through MyChart, and the hospital expects digital services to be affected for several days. Incidents of this kind at large health systems often involve patient-data exposure risk, though nothing has been confirmed by University Hospitals. Quest Diagnostics, which runs outpatient labs at the hospital, confirmed in a regulatory filing that an unauthorized party accessed 'certain patient records' in an attack disclosed earlier in the same week.
What to do
Monitor the hospital's official updates and direct patients to phone channels. If your company integrates with University Hospitals or Quest Diagnostics systems, review those connections and monitor accounts. Check how long your operations could run with core digital services down.
For the technical team
- Affected
- Sistemas de TI do University Hospitals (Cleveland, Ohio) · University Hospitals (Cleveland, Ohio) digital services: institutional websites and MyChart (website and apps).
- Exploitation
- No confirmed attack or exploitation at University Hospitals; investigation ongoing. Quest Diagnostics, which provides outpatient lab services at the hospital, confirmed in a regulatory filing that an unauthorized party accessed 'certain patient records' (attack disclosed earlier that week, with no confirmed link to UH).
- Fix
- No patch applicable. The hospital says it is working 'around the clock' to address the issue and expects digital services to be affected for several days.
- Vector
- Not disclosed. The hospital reported only 'unusual activity' on servers and disconnected systems from the internet as a precaution; no vulnerability, vector, or exploitation condition has been revealed.
- More details
- Detection on Thursday, October 22, 2026; statement attributed to spokesperson Ansley Kelm. On Friday the 23rd, websites showed an error message citing 'limited services,' and MyChart (site and apps) was not working. Cleveland Clinic and MetroHealth said they were not affected. Coverage: Ideastream (Oct 23), WKYC, and Becker's Hospital Review.
Timeline
Hospital disconnects MyChart and its website after unusual server activity.
Sources 3 sources
- University Hospitals disconnects online systems after detecting 'unusual activity' on servers WKYC
- University Hospitals websites, MyChart down after 'unusual activity' on servers Ideastream Public Media
- University Hospitals takes IT systems offline after 'unusual activity' Becker's Hospital Review
