LockBit, a cybercriminal organization, appeared to issue an apology and offer a decryption key after it attacked SickKids, a major pediatric hospital in Toronto, Techradar reported Jan. 3.
The group's ransomware-as-a-service model utilizes affiliated hackers, who receive a portion of the ransom. Dominic Alvieri, a cybersecurity expert, tweeted that LockBit said the affiliate who partially disabled SickKids' website, phone lines and corporate function lines violated the group's rules of engagement.
"We formally apologize for the attack on si[c]kkids.ca and give back the decryptor for free; the partner who attacked this hospital violated our rules, is blocked and is no longer in our affiliate program," the group said, according to a screenshot posted on Twitter.
In December, HHS alerted American healthcare organizations of the cyber threat posed by LockBit.