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Health care system faces ‘very real’ threat of ransomware attacks
News Center Maine, June 16, 2021 Criminals usually target hospitals for medical records, since they can sell for 200 to 500 dollars on the dark web compared to 14 dollars for financial records. Read full News Center Maine article.
HHS Shares Resources for Avoiding Ransomware Attacks
American College of Radiology, June 16, 2021 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is encouraging organizations to familiarize themselves with the growing threat of ransomware — malicious software that blocks access to a...
Health care ransomware attacks: Oklahoma health system driven to EHR downtime
SC Media, June 16, 2021 Stillwater Medical Center was hit with a ransomware attack on June 13 and is currently operating under electronic health record downtime as it attempts to bring its systems back online. The health system operates a number of care sites,...
Cybersecurity for healthcare systems, medical devices more critical than ever
Today's Medical Developments, June 11, 2021 Rise in ransomware attacks forcing hospitals to harden cybersecurity. Cybercriminals have stepped up their game during the pandemic, launching ransomware attacks at a frenzied pace. In 2020, more than 90 U.S. healthcare...
Opinion: We at Scripps Health were victims of a ransomware attack. Here’s what we’ve learned.
The San Diego Union-Tribune, June 10, 2021 This past year, we’ve witnessed doctors, nurses and hospitals on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic performing heroically in the face of the most difficult circumstances seen in a century. Just as it seems hospitals and...
Ransomware Attacks: CISA Shares Operational Tech Asset Security Guide
Health IT Security, June 10, 2021 In response to ongoing ransomware attacks targeting operational tech assets and control systems of critical infrastructure entities, CISA published a guide to mitigation and response. Read ful Health IT Security article.
What Happens After a Ransomware Attack in the Health IT Environment?
Health IT Security, June 9, 2021 CyberMDX’s Ido Geffen takes a hard look at ransomware attacks within a healthcare environment, including what providers are getting wrong and needed security mitigations. Read full Health IT Security article.
Cyberattack Drives 2 UF Health Hospitals to EHR Downtime
Health IT Security, June 7, 2021 Reports show UF Health in Central Florida leadership is looking into a cyberattack against two of its hospitals, while operating under EHR downtime procedures. Read full Health IT Security article.
White House urges US companies to take ransomware seriously
Tech Republic, June 3, 2021 A new White House memo to business leaders underscores the threat of ransomware and offers advice on how to protect their companies. Read full Tech Republic article.
Ransomware gang behind Ireland attack also hit US health and emergency networks
MSN, May 23, 2021 The ransomware attack that hobbled the Irish healthcare system was far from an isolated incident. BleepingComputer and Gizmodo note that the FBI has issued a flash alert warning that the ransomware group behind the Ireland attack also targeted "at...
FBI says Conti ransomware gang has hit 16 U.S. health and emergency networks
SC Media, May 21, 2021 The Federal Bureau of Investigation said that the same group of online extortionists blamed for striking the Irish health system last week have also hit at least 16 U.S. medical and first response networks in the past year. Read full SC Media...
Ransomware attack on health care company, CaptureRx, exposes multiple providers
SC Media, May 10, 2021 A ransomware attack against CaptureRx, a drug-related administrative service provider in San Antonio, Texas, resulted in the exposure of the health information of patients or customers at several health care providers across the U.S.,...
Ransomware Task Force releases long-awaited recommendations
SC Media, April 29, 2021 The Ransomware Task Force (RTF), a collaboration of more than 60 stakeholders, released its long-awaited ransomware framework on Thursday morning, advocating nearly 50 interlocking government and private sector strategies to tackle the...
Homeland Security Secretary Backs Call for Mandatory Disclosure of Ransomware Payments
NEXTGOV, April 29, 2021 DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the department will work with a task force developed by the private sector on ways to tamp down the increase in ransomware attacks. Read full NextGov article.
Health Care Ransomware Strains Have Hospitals in the Crosshairs
SECURITY INTELLIGENCE, April 23, 2021 The language of digital attacks shares a lot with the language of disease: ‘viruses’ ‘infect’ computers, and stopping their spread can be like trying to keep down a contagious disease. Read full Security Intelligence...
Emerging Tech Shapes the Next Generation of Military Health Care
GOVERNMENT CIO MEDIA & RESEARCH, April 19, 2021 Automation and AI can support medical decision-making on the battlefield, but security remains crucial. Read full Government CIO Media & Research article.
Healthcare Organizations: Moving to High Alert for Ransomware
CSO ONLINE, April 13, 2021 Numerous healthcare facilities were attacked in the last year, including one incident in Germany that lead to a death when ransomware locked systems and a patient needing critical care was turned away. Read full CSO Online article.
Healthcare’s Data Extortion Problem, and How to Prepare for Ransomware
HEALTH IT SECURITY, April 12, 2021 Data extortion attempts are now occurring in at least 70 percent of all ransomware attacks. How can healthcare providers best combat these pervasive tactics? Read full Health IT Security article.
BioTel Heart vendor breach left patients’ information public for nearly a year
Becker's Health IT, April 5, 2021 BioTel Heart began informing 38,575 patients that a vendor data breach may have left their personal information exposed for nearly a year. In a data breach notice, BioTel Heart said that on Jan. 28, the healthcare provider was...
Hackers claim they stole Stanford Medicine data, posted info online: 4 things to know
Becker's Health IT, April 5, 2021 Stanford University is investigating claims that hackers stole personal data from its medical school and published the information online. Read full Becker's Health IT article.
Ransomware attack affects 750,000 Personal Touch patients, employees across U.S.
Becker's Health IT, April 5, 2021 Personal Touch Holding Corp., the parent company of Personal Touch Home Care centers across the U.S., recently began notifying 753,107 patients and employees of a ransomware attack on its cloud-stored business records. The data breach...
Cybercriminals accessed Maryland orthopedic center’s emails for a year, affecting 125,000
Becker's Health IT, April 5, 2021 On March 25, the Bethesda, Md.-based Centers for Advanced Orthopaedics began notifying 125,291 patients, employees and dependents of a cyberattack that took place over a yearlong breach. In a news release, the orthopedics center said...
Health care organizations funnel dollars into security as pandemic, medical developments drive surge in attacks
SC Media, April 1, 2021 Organizations move on plans to strengthen security policies, increase training, invest in technology. Read full SC Media article.
Ransomware attack alert! The tell-tale signals to look for
Computing, March 31, 2021 Patterns of unusual behaviour are the clearest signal of an attack, not programmes or files. Read full Computing article.
Minnesota clinic transitions to Allina Health’s EHR after ransomware attack
Becker's Health IT, March 31, 2021 Apple Valley (Minn.) Clinic, part of Minneapolis-based Allina Health, recently transitioned to the health system's EHR platform following a ransomware attack on its tech services vendor that exposed nearly 158,000 patients'...
Secretary Mayorkas Outlines His Vision for Cybersecurity Resilience
Homeland Security, March 31, 2021 On March 31, Secretary Mayorkas outlined his vision and roadmap for the Department’s cybersecurity efforts in a virtual address hosted by RSA Conference, in partnership with Hampton University and the Girl Scouts of the USA. Read...
Rise in Healthcare Data Breaches Driven by Ransomware Attacks
CPO Magazine, March 18, 2021 There was a general rise in cyber crime in 2020 due to pandemic conditions, but one notable trend that stood out was a spike in the number of major healthcare data breaches. A new report from cybersecurity firm Tenable reviews the entirety...
Ransomware attacks on healthcare organizations cost nearly $21B last year, study finds
Becker's Hospital Review, March 12, 2021 Six-hundred clinics, hospital and healthcare organizations were attacked by 92 individual ransomware attacks, affecting 18 million patient records in 2020. The costs of these attacks are almost $21 billion, a Comparitech study...
Ransomware, supply chain attacks compel health care organizations to act
SC Media, March 9, 2021 If ransomware and data exfiltration attacks that targeted hospitals and vaccine researchers during the pandemic signaled a cyber hygiene crisis in health care, the SolarWinds supply chain attack demonstrated just how deep the problem goes. A...
Ransomware attack exposed info of 210K MultiCare patients, providers, workers
Becker's Hospital Review, March 9, 2021 More than 200,000 patients, providers and employees of Tacoma, Wash.-based MultiCare began receiving notice that their personal info had been exposed in a recent ransomware attack. Read full Becker's Hospital Review...
Vendor ransomware attack exposes patient information at South Carolina practice
Becker's Hospital Review, March 8, 2021 Sandhills Medical Foundation notified patients that an external cloud vendor underwent a ransomware attack, exposing patients' personal information, according to a news release. The attackers accessed Sandhills' system on Nov....
Navajo Nation hospital the latest victim of brutal wave of ransomware attacks
Yahoo.com, March 3, 2021 When Rehoboth McKinley Christian Health Care Services in Gallup, New Mexico, was hit with a cyberattack earlier this year, the hospital's staff had to revert to pen and paper to keep things running. Read full Navajo Nation hospital ransomware...
Universal Health Services Estimates $67 Million in Ransomware Losses
Info Security Magazine, March 2, 2021 A ransomware attack on Universal Health Services (UHS) last autumn cost the company an estimated $67 million in downtime and related expenses, it has revealed. The Fortune 500 healthcare organization has tens of thousands of...
CIS Launches No-Cost Ransomware Service for U.S. Hospitals
Center for Internet Security (CIS), February 18, 2021 The nonprofit Center for Internet Security announced this week that it had launched a no-cost ransomware protection service for private hospitals in the United States. The Malicious Domain Blocking and Reporting...
Hackers Dump More Health Data, as Feds Share Ransomware Factsheet
Health IT Security, February 8, 2021 The Conti ransomware hacking group recently released two massive healthcare data dumps tied to Leon Medical Centers and Nocona General Hospital on the dark web for sale. The leaks follow a newly released National Cyber...
The National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force Releases Ransomware Fact Sheet
FBI.gov, February 4, 2021 The National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force (NCIJTF) has released a new joint-seal ransomware fact sheet. This educational product is intended to provide the public important information on the current ransomware threat and the...
Dead System Admin’s Credentials Used for Ransomware Attack
Healthcare Info Security, January 28, 2021 Operators of the Nefilim ransomware used the credentials of a deceased system administrator to plant their crypto-locking malware in about 100 vulnerable systems during one attack, according to a recent report published by...
Texas Medical Center Breach Affects 640,000
Data Breach Today, January 22, 2021 An apparent ransomware incident at a Texas healthcare organization has potentially compromised the protected health information of more than 640,000 individuals. Read full Data Breach Today article.
CISA Launches Campaign to Reduce the Risk of Ransomware
Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), January 21, 2021 The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) announced the Reduce the Risk of Ransomware Campaign today, a focused, coordinated and sustained effort to encourage public and...
560 Healthcare Providers Fell Victim to Ransomware Attacks in 2020
Health IT Security, January 19, 2021 In 2020, Emsisoft data shows 560 healthcare provider facilities fell victim to ransomware attacks, of an overall 2,354 US entities hit by the malware variant. Read full Health IT Security article.
FBI Warns Egregor Ransomware Actors Actively Extorting Entities
Cybersecurity News, Janury 7, 2021 A Wednesday FBI private industry notification warns entities that the threat actors behind Egregor ransomware are actively targeting and exploiting a range of global businesses. Read full Cybersecurity News article.
Minnesota’s Lake Region Healthcare Recovering From Ransomware Attack
IT Health Security, Janury 7, 2021 A ransomware attack struck Minnesota-based Lake Region Healthcare just before Christmas, resulting in some system disruptions; “activist” data leaks and two email hacks complete this week’s breach roundup. Read full IT Health...
UVM Health Delays Epic EHR Implementation After Cyberattack, COVID-19
EHR Intelligence, January 6, 2021 One of 2020’s worst cyberattacks resulted in University of Vermont (UVM) Health delaying its Epic EHR implementation schedule. Read full EHR Implementation article.
Healthcare Organizations Bear the Brunt of Cyberattacks Amid Pandemic
DARK READING, January 6, 2021 Hospitals and other healthcare organizations bore the brunt of cyberattacks last year, all the while struggling to cope with the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a new report this week from Check Point Software,...
Cyberattacks on Healthcare Spike 45% Since November
Threat Post, January 5, 2021 The relentless rise in COVID-19 cases is battering already frayed healthcare systems — and ransomware criminals are using the opportunity to strike. Read full Threat Post article.
After widespread hospital attacks, targeting of health care industry continues to rise
SC Media, January 5, 2021 A wave of ransomware attacks against hospitals in the United States and United Kingdom late last year shocked the conscious of many cybersecurity professionals. Things have only gotten worse for the health care industry since then. Read full...
Cyberattack on UVM Health Network Impedes Chemotherapy Appointments
The cyberattack has halted chemotherapy, mammogram and screening appointments, and led to 300 staff being furloughed or reassigned. Read full threatpost.com article.
The Institute for Security and Technology (IST) Launches Multi-Sector Ransomware Task Force (RTF)
Institute for Security and Technology (IST), December 21, 2020 The Institute for Security and Technology (IST) — in partnership with a broad coalition of experts in industry, government, law enforcement, nonprofits, cybersecurity insurance, and international...
Patients of a Vermont Hospital Are Left ‘in the Dark’ After a Cyberattack
NY Times, November 26, 2020 A wave of damaging attacks on hospitals upended the lives of patients with cancer and other ailments. “I have no idea what to do,” one said. Cyberattacks on America’s health systems have become their own kind of pandemic over the past year...
Ransomware in healthcare: The inevitable truth
MedCity News, October 30, 2020 The best path forward for healthcare organizations is first to understand the characteristics, causes, and indicators of ransomware attacks and then be proactive in taking preventative measures. Read full MedCity News article.