MedTech Series x DigitalXRAID
In the move to a greener era, waste is always a topic of discussion. Improper waste management can hinder the environment in a number of ways, from land degradation to air pollution stemming from incineration. Globally, the healthcare industry produces thousands of tonnes of waste each year, and 15% of this is considered hazardous material that may be infectious, chemical, or radioactive.
The Minefield of MedTech Cybersecurity
Exploring the cyber risk in healthcare with digtalXRAID
The healthcare industry is a common and ever-growing target for cybercriminals. To understand more about this stemming issue, we collaborated with DigitalXRAID which is at the epicentre of the cyber crime challenge. DigitalXRAID is an award-winning managed security services provider with 25+ years’ experience, dedicated to providing their clients with state-of-the-art cyber security solutions.
We spoke with Rick Jones, CEO and Co-founder of DigitalXRAID, who has an impressive career spanning 25 years of delivering cybersecurity strategies and network security architecture to large corporates, to explore the security challenge facing the healthcare industry and what organisations can do to prepare.
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The Primary Cyber Attack Target
The healthcare industry is a common and ever-growing target for cybercriminals. According to Check Point Research (CPR), healthcare organisations experienced 1,426 attacks per week in 2022, a 60% increase from the previous year. The attacks are continuous, increasing in size and complexity, and for those in the sector, it is a case of when, not if. Whilst not all of these attacks will be made public, there are growing news stories around cyber attacks causing catastrophe in healthcare organisations. For example, just last month a cyber attack closed down emergency rooms in three US states, due to an attack on Ardent Health’s IT infrastructure.
Healthcare is often considered the primary target amongst all industries. The reasoning behind it being the primary target stems from a number of places, one of the main ones being the sensitivity of the patient data that is held.
“Healthcare is a prime target for cyber attacks because of the sensitive nature of the data it handles. Medical records are valuable on the black market due to their comprehensive personal information. Security is paramount in handling patient data due to the highly personal and sensitive information involved. A breach can lead to identity theft and medical identity fraud. Maintaining trust is critical; without it, patients might withhold crucial health information. Additionally, the sector often lags in updating cybersecurity practices and technologies, creating exploitable vulnerabilities. Aside from this, the NHS doesn’t necessarily have the resource or budget to put the right protection in place.
Cyber attacks have increased since Covid due to the accelerated digital transformation in healthcare. Remote work and telehealth services expanded attack surfaces. The urgency of the pandemic often led to rapid digital solutions deployment without thorough security checks.” – Rick Jones
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The Continual Cyber Risk
Whilst the pandemic was a few years ago now, the ripple effects of those digital systems that are lacking proper cybersecurity measures are still causing vulnerabilities for healthcare organisations worldwide today, and we must continue our mission to rectify and protect these organisations.
“It’s crucial that we continue to dedicate time and resource to boosting cybersecurity in healthcare. More so than other industries, breaches in healthcare can have a knock-on effect on reputation, even impacting the quality of care and
confidentiality that healthcare providers can offer. The recent breach of the online pharmacy fulfilment provider Postmeds has once again highlighted one of the biggest risks for healthcare organisations: their supply chain. Cybercriminals have learned that leveraging backdoor entry through less resourced companies in a supply chain is an effective way to exploit small businesses and gain access to larger ones – in the case of Postmeds, stealing the personal data of 2.3 million patients.” – Rick Jones