University Hospitals websites, MyChart down after 'unusual activity' on servers

University Hospitals websites and MyChart systems have been taken offline following what the hospital called “unusual activity” on its servers.

University Hospitals systems were disconnected from the internet after officials detected unusual activity on Thursday. A statement provided by University Hospitals spokesperson Ansley Kelm said the move was made out of “an abundance of caution.”

The statement went on to say the hospital system is not currently experiencing any disruptions to patient care but expects digital services may be affected for the several days. It said the hospital is working "around the clock to address the issue."

The hospital systems' websites showed an error message as of Friday notifying patients the website "is experiencing difficulties and limited services are available at this time." The MyChart website and apps also did not appear to be working for University Hospitals patients.

Quest Diagnostics, the medical laboratory operator that provides outpatient lab services at University Hospitals, disclosed a cyber attack on some of its systems earlier in the week. In a regulatory finding the company confirmed that an unauthorized party accessed “certain patient records" during the breach. The company said it has hired "external cybersecurity experts" to investigate the attack.

The Cleveland Clinic and MetroHealth hospitals said they have not been affected.