CDR Writer
Healthcare facilities were some of the most vulnerable cybersecurity targets in 2020. Even before the pandemic tested the healthcare systems around the globe to their limits, a 2019 report predicted that the ransomware attacks would grow four-fold between 2017 and 2020, and the industry will most likely pay $65 billion on cybersecurity between 2017 and 2021.
And the pandemic only aggravated the situation.
Healthcare Facilities: The New Ransomware Target
“Hackers without conscience” was the term Bloomberg used to refer to the cybercriminals who attacked the healthcare facilities across the globe when they were humanity's primary line of defense against the pandemic. And we have to concede with the sentiment and assume that some "professionals" don't have standards.
There are several reasons why that happened.
- Healthcare facilities are becoming smarter. With cutting-edge advances in diagnostics tools and facility-wide control and monitoring resources, the attack surface has also increased. Cybersecurity might not be the top priority when these devices are being designed (even if they are network connected), so their firmware level protection is usually rudimentary. And with several different device vendors and firmware updates, there are a lot of entryways for hackers.
- Even if a healthcare facility has a fantastic cybersecurity team/system in place, the workers and doctors are rarely trained to adopt good cybersecurity habits. Medical training and specialized courses (from nurses to heads of departments, because they all have access to precious medical data) are usually prioritized over security training, so the access of medical personnel often becomes a weak link.
- There is a severe shortage of cybersecurity professionals with healthcare-relevant training and expertise. According to a 2020 report, it takes 70% more time to find the right cyber security professional for a healthcare facility than to find someone for other IT jobs.
- COVID triggered an expedited conversion to the cloud and remote work, especially in the healthcare system. And since healthcare facilities became the hotbed of the virus, non-medical staff like the cybersecurity and IT professionals mostly worked remotely. This opened medical facilities up to more breaches, and remotely controlled cloud migrations also created more holes in the cybersecurity umbrella, letting the more ransomware “droplets” through.
Find The Right Professionals
Ironically, if financial resources are not a problem, outsourcing some elements of a healthcare system's cybersecurity to the top vendors and firms in the industry is the most obvious and potent solution. If you are responsible for the cybersecurity of a healthcare facility, make sure you understand your attack surface and are prepared to defend it. Augment your defenses with the right cybersecurity vendors, and the best way to find the right vendors is leveraging an aggregator service.
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CDR Writer
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