Reading Room
The internet’s ‘existential threat’: From hospitals to schools, ransomware disrupts Florida’s most vital services
Orlando Sentinel, July 23, 2021
When Paula Sullivan took her husband to the emergency room at UF Health The Villages Hospital in early June, she remembers thinking it should be a short visit — probably no more than overnight. At 55 and struggling with ongoing cancer treatment, he often needed transfusions of platelets following chemotherapy.
How Can Congress Aid Healthcare Cybersecurity, Fight Ransomware?
Health IT Security, July 22, 2021
Witnesses testified before Congress this week, noting that the healthcare sector needs help battling cyberattacks and ransomware.
Second FinCEN Exchange on Ransomware to Take Place in August
FinCEN, July 15, 2021
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) today announced it will convene a FinCEN Exchange in August 2021 with representatives from financial institutions, other key industry stakeholders, and federal government agencies to discuss ongoing concerns regarding ransomware, as well as efforts by the public and private sectors. The FinCEN Exchange will build upon FinCEN’s November 2020 event on ransomware. FinCEN anticipates that this FinCEN Exchange will assist its government and private sector partners to inform next steps to address ransomware and focus resources to mitigate the threat.
Rewards for Justice – Reward Offer for Information on Foreign Malicious Cyber Activity Against U.S. Critical Infrastructure
U.S. Department of State, July 15, 2021
The U.S. Department of State’s Rewards for Justice (RFJ) program, which is administered by the Diplomatic Security Service, is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the identification or location of any person who, while acting at the direction or under the control of a foreign government, participates in malicious cyber activities against U.S. critical infrastructure in violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA).
White House announces ransomware task force — and hacking back is one option
Politico, July 14, 2021
The administration is promoting efforts to help agencies go on defense and offense against hackers whose economically paralyzing attacks pose a growing threat to the U.S.
Report: Cyberattacks drive 185% spike in health care data breaches in 2021
SC Magazine, July 13, 2021
More than 22.8 million patients have been impacted by a health care data breach so far in 2021, a whopping 185% increase from the same time period last year where just 7.9 million individuals were affected according to a new report from Fortified Health Security.
Hacking group behind widespread ransomware attacks disappears online
The Washington Post, July 13, 2021
A cybercriminal group that took responsibility for a massive ransomware attack that affected hundreds of businesses this month has disappeared from sight online.
The Ransomware Crime Wave Has Made Zero Trust Critical
eWeek, July 12, 2021
Zero trust proceeds from the foundational framework that no individual, no device, no application, no thing can be trusted as secure.
Could allowlisting reduce the impact of ransomware, cyberattacks on health care?
SC Magazine, July 12, 2021
A recent IDC report confirmed the health care sector is more vulnerable to the consequences of cyberattacks than other industries and the most likely to suffer application downtime, with 53% of covered entities reporting downtime after an attack.
Data of 1.2M patients stolen prior to third-party vendor ransomware attack
SC Magazine, July 9, 2021
Practicefirst Medical Management Solutions and PBS Medcode recently notified 1.2 million patients that their data was accessed and stolen from its network, ahead of a ransomware attack deployed on Dec. 25, 2020.