In August, Barracuda published its fifth annual review of reported ransomware incidents around the world, which showed how ransomware attacks hitting healthcare organizations had more than doubled since 2022. This finding was based on publicly reported incidents and is in line with other studies based on both reported and unreported incidents.
However, if you look at healthcare in the context of other industry sectors, a more complex picture emerges. In many cases, healthcare suffers fewer major cyberincidents than other industries — but the attacks make headlines because of the risk and sensitivity of clinical activity and patient data. And in some cases because the impact, while limited, is severe.
Healthcare is an enduring target for cyberattackIn March, a ransomware attack on one of Barcelona’s main hospitals crippled the centre’s computer system and forced the cancellation of non-urgent operations and patient checkups. The attackers spent the next few months posting allegedly stolen data online after the hospital refused to pay the ransom.
A few months later, in August, a cyberattack against Prospect Medical Holdings in the U.S. disrupted hospital computer systems across the nation, forcing emergency rooms in several states to close and ambulances to be diverted.
Understanding and addressing the cyber risks facing healthcare organizations is critical.
A good place to start is with email-based risk. Email remains a primary attack vector with a high success rate that is a common entry point for many other cyberattacks. In a post-pandemic world, where the move towards digital healthcare and connected data is accelerating, broadening the attack surface for threat actors to target, healthcare organizations are more exposed than ever.
45% of healthcare organizations said they felt a lot more secure in 2022 — although 77% suffered an email security breach Recent international ..
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