December 21, 2023

Protecting Patient Lives and Data in a World of Increasing Cyber Threats

A recent Forbes article posited the claim that “Healthcare cybersecurity specialists will face unprecedented demand in the coming years,” which, a decade ago, may have been a bold claim. But to anyone who’s worked in the field of healthcare IT since the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, the writing hasn’t just been on the wall; it’s been bedazzled and spraypainted with glow-in-the-dark ink.

Every other week, an article detailing a devastating cyberattack on an institution seems to be published. Recently, an article was published detailing an Illinois hospital shutting its doors due to a vicious cyberattack. Authors of a recent study are also calling for cyberattacks on hospitals to be categorized as regional disasters.

Over the past decade, hospitals have wisely invested in cloud infrastructure, Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). While these investments have brought countless benefits in terms of efficiency and accessibility, they have also introduced wider risks due to the sheer amount of data stored within these complex environments. As we all know, the healthcare industry is a prime target for cybercriminals due to the valuable patient data we hold. A standard IaaS offering just isn’t what it used to be. Hospitals must invest in strategic partners who provide their teams with a functional and efficient environment with baseline protections, proactive defensive measures, critical procedures, and access to a deep knowledge of best practices to keep their environment and patients safe.

Protecting patient health information shouldn’t be the most important cyber-defense objective for a hospital- it should be protecting patient life because, unfortunately, we live in a new era where patient lives have been lost due to cyberattacks. Yet, every regulation and government guideline (i.e., HIPAA, NIST, etc.) provides guidelines to protect data, not human life. Therefore, only adhering to these regulations and guidelines can provide a false sense of security for healthcare providers and leave patients vulnerable to the consequences of a cyber-attack.

There are several ways to protect patient lives and data in a world where these threats are becoming more prevalent and sophisticated. As we previously outlined in this article, maintaining systems patching is paramount to the security of every healthcare organization. Cyber-criminals consistently search for and exploit vulnerabilities to infect hospital environments with malicious code, which can, in turn, disrupt hospital operations. With 75% of attacks targeting vulnerabilities that are at least two years old, regularly patching critical software, servers, and systems is the simplest measure an organization can take to protect its environment, data, and patients.

Education and awareness also play a critical role in defending against cyber threats. Cybersecurity education is more important than ever, as it empowers your team to stay current on the risks they face and helps them make informed decisions to protect patient lives and sensitive data. Investing time in meeting with cybersecurity experts is invaluable, as their expertise will provide deep insight into emerging threats, best practices, and cybercriminals’ tactics. Additionally, periodic tabletop exercises provide an opportunity to identify areas for improvement in response and technical and process defenses and to learn how your team would respond in a critical event. Check out this story to see how ArchCare executed several tabletop simulations across multiple teams and improved their processes and cybersecurity readiness.

If you’re interested in learning more about how to strengthen your security posture, sign up for CloudWave’s Cybersecurity Insider Program. This free educational program will grant your team access to many benefits, such as live monthly cybersecurity educational webinars, on-demand training sessions, threat intelligence alerts, and more. Having your team attend the free education satisfies the requirements for annual security training. For more information, you can sign up here.

Andrew Donaldson, Associate Product Manager