Federal officials revealed that a cyberattack in December 2022 caused the outage of the US's 988 mental health helpline for nearly a whole day, according to a report by AP on Friday, Feb. 3.
This incident has prompted lawmakers to look for ways to prevent such attacks from happening once again, especially for a crucial, life-saving helpline like 988.
Sally, a volunteer, listens to a caller at Embrace, a suicide prevention helpline, in the Lebanese capital Beirut on July 13, 2018. - In Lebanon, mental health and suicide have long been deeply taboo subjects, with both major religions in the tiny country -- Islam and Christianity -- condemning taking one's own life.
Unusable on December 1
Danielle Bennett, a spokesperson for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), told AP that a cybersecurity breach made the audio calling feature of the 988 Lifeline unusable on Dec. 1, 2022.
The company Intrado, which offers telecommunications services for the hotline, experienced an attack on its network last month.
Law enforcement agencies have been informed of the breach, and Intrado is investigating the issue with the assistance of a third-party evaluator, according to SAMHSA.
With millions of calls coming in within the first six months following its inception in July, the national 988 phone number has emerged as a lifeline for millions of Americans needing mental health assistance.
The system is intended to function similarly to 911; it is a common, simple number that anyone can call in an emergency to speak with a human operator who is on duty 24 hours a day.
Text and chat services, however, were inaccessible to individuals who needed assistance on Dec. 1.
New Bill
Republican Rep. Jay Obernolte and Democrat Rep. Tony Cárdenas who are both from California, proposed a bill last week that calls for better communication and reporting on cyberattacks on the 988 lifeline.
"Even a few hours' outage of the national suicide hotline can cost American lives," Rep. Obernolte said in a press release statement.
"It's critical that we mitigate the risks of future disruptions to the service and take steps to resolve cybersecurity vulnerabilities that could put the hotline at risk.
The 9-8-8 Lifeline Cybersecurity Responsibility Act changes the law allowing the 9-8-8 program to call for greater cooperation and reporting on possible cybersecurity vulnerabilities within the 9-8-8 lifeline to lessen future cyberattacks and avoid service interruptions.
The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention reports that there are 130 suicides in the country per day on average. One suicide death occurred every 11 minutes in 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control's most recent report.
In 2020, veterans' suicide rates were 57.3% higher than non-veterans. Suicide was also the second-leading cause of death for veterans under 45.
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