Hospitals and the health care industry are being deliberately targeted by hackers, cyber criminals and spies seeking a treasure trove of personal and financial information, a business consultancy has warned.

Attacks by organised gangs and even state spy agencies are a growing concern as they hunt for details that can be used for extortion or even espionage.

The theft of personal details of 1.5 million people from a Singaporean health database, including that of the prime minister, by a state-sponsored espionage group has highlighted the threat, said BDO.

Hospitals and clinics are also often poorly defended compared to banks or government institutions, despite representing a “honeypot of valuable information” said Gregory Garrett, head of international cyber security at the firm.

He said: “The healthcare industry has the electronic healthcare records on individuals, they have the personable identifiable information on individuals and in most cases they also have their payment card information.”

The UK's National Cyber Security Centre, an offshoot of the GCHQ electronic spy agency, said it is working closely with the health and social care sector “to ensure their platforms are as secure and resilient as possible”.