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Prime Minister Maris Kucinskis (Greens/Farmers) said, however, that the hacking reports have not been confirmed.

“Not everyone is happy about the launch of the e-health system,” Barca said, commenting on the possible motives behind the break-in, adding that the system contains not only “sick-lists and e-prescriptions”, but also extensive data on all residents of Latvia.

In Barca’s words, hackers gained access to the e-health system because it was a targeted attack and the system had serious vulnerabilities. The lawmaker could not say whether the attack came from Latvia or abroad.

The incident has been reported to Prime Minister Kucinskis who is in charge of the health sector while Health Minister Anda Caksa is on maternity leave. Latvia’s security agencies are also looking into this case, Barca said.

Kucinskis said on Latvian Television this morning that the security services have checked the situation but the information about a hack into the e-health system has not been confirmed.

The premier explained that there had been suspicions of an intention to disrupt the system, not a data theft. “It’s hard for me to comment on this,” the prime minister admitted, adding that the system is working and will be demonstrated to lawmakers at today’s meeting.

Representatives of Latvian IT Security Incidents Response Institution Cert.lv told LETA that the hacking reports have not been confirmed at this point but that Cert.lv together with other agencies continues work to probe the situation.

Barca denied the use of the e-health system could be suspended because of its numerous functional issues.

The Saeima Social and Labor Affairs Committee today will meet to debate the launch of the e-health system and officials’ responsibility for its flaws.