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I refer to the report on Web service outages at public hospitals and polyclinics (Web service outages of hospitals, polyclinics caused by attacks that are continuing: IT provider, Nov 3). Cyber attacks on healthcare software and IT systems are becoming more common worldwide. A study published in December 2022 by the Journal of the American Medical Association found that the annual number of ransomware attacks rose from 43 to 91 from 2016 to 2021, with almost half of these attacks disrupting the delivery of healthcare. Such cyber attacks on healthcare systems will continue, services will be disrupted, and medical records may not be available after such attacks.  Patients should not rely entirely on healthcare IT professionals to protect the system and patients’ medical records. I suggest all patients keep a hard copy of their medical records, including the type and dosage of medication, investigation reports such as blood count and imaging studies, as well as discharge summaries. Patients and their caretakers can ask their doctors to give them the hard copy. To save paper, they can also ask to take screenshots of their medical records, which can be referred to if the hospital IT system is unavailable. With the increasing risk of healthcare facilities being compromised by cyber attacks, it is time for all patients to take an active role in keeping copies of their own medical records.