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US Healthcare at risk: Strengthening resiliency against ransomware attacks

Posted on October 25, 2024 by Dissent

Microsoft writes:

The healthcare sector faces a rapidly increasing range of cybersecurity threats, with ransomware attacks emerging as one of the most significant. A combination of valuable patient data, interconnected medical devices, and small IT/cybersecurity operations staff, which spreads resources thin, can make healthcare organizations prime targets for threat actors. As healthcare operations become increasingly digitized—ranging from electronic health records (EHR) to telemedicine platforms and networked medical devices—the attack surface of hospitals grows more complex, further heightening their vulnerability to attacks.

The following sections provide an overview of the current cybersecurity landscape in healthcare, highlighting the industry’s status as a major target, the growing frequency of ransomware attacks, and the severe financial and patient care consequences these threats are imposing.

A video discussion led by Sherrod DeGrippo, Director of Threat Intelligence Strategy for Microsoft, further explores these critical issues, offering insights from experts on threat actors, recovery strategies, and healthcare vulnerabilities.

Some of the key statistics:

Healthcare among the most impacted industries for ransomware

According to Microsoft Threat Intelligence, the healthcare/public health sector was one of the top 10 most impacted industries in the second quarter of 2024.1

300% surge in ransomware attacks

Ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) has lowered entry barriers for attackers lacking technical expertise, while Russia provides a safe harbor for ransomware groups. As a result, ransomware attacks have surged by 300% since 2015.2

High financial impact—$900,000 daily in downtime alone

This fiscal year, 389 U.S. healthcare institutions were hit by ransomware, causing network shutdowns, offline systems, delays in critical medical procedures, and rescheduled appointments3. The attacks are costly, with one industry report showing healthcare organizations lose up to $900,000 per day on downtime alone.4

Average admitted ransom payment: $4.4 million

Out of the 99 healthcare organizations that admitted to paying the ransom and disclosed the ransom paid, the median payment was $1.5 million, and the average payment was $4.4 million.5

Read more at Microsoft.

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