Healthcare is a particularly vulnerable sector when it comes to cyberattacks. Given that many of the organisations that operate within it handle vast amounts of sensitive patient data - including personal and medical records – this should come as no surprise.
If stolen or corrupted, the consequences to patients could be devastating, or even life-threatening.
In June, several London hospitals fell victim to a cyberattack which resulted in the postponement of over 1,000 planned operations and 3,000 outpatient appointments.
Healthcare is a particularly vulnerable sector when it comes to cyberattacks
The NHS lacked robust enough IT systems and security practices, which played a large role in this as stated by the founder of the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). Reminiscent of the infamous 2017 WannaCry attack, this most recent attack on the UK’s public sector serves as a reminder of the need for data protection for healthcare organisations.
In Labour’s manifesto, they laid out plans to build an NHS ‘fit for the future’. It's understandable that putting strong cybersecurity plans in place could fall down the priority list given the industry's widespread talent and budgetary constraints, but in the current digital environment, it simply cannot be disregarded.
Unsecure data costs, often heavily
Research released last year revealed that three in four (76%) healthcare organisations around the world have experienced a successful ransomware attack and two thirds (65%) have experienced data loss from other types of attack.
Almost half (43%) of those organisations consider data security as their primary risk. This comes ahead of economic uncertainty (39%) and the adoption of emerging technologies like AI (32%).
A cyberattack has the potential to destroy any business. When it comes to the healthcare industry, especially the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) which services a large portion of the population, an attack feels more personal. Its impact is widespread and unavoidable.
In the healthcare space, it can be even more tempting to pay off the attackers, due to the sensitivity of the information they manage to get hold of
At a base level, cyberattacks can disrupt medical services and cripple hospital operations. This is because, when systems are down, essential patient information is inaccessible.
This can delay medical procedures and compromise patient care. It can also increase the risk of medical errors and negatively impact treatment outcomes.
Beyond this, cyberattacks also frequently result in hefty financial costs. Sometimes this is in the form of immediate ransomware payments, however, any prolonged downtime and recovery following an attack could also have an impact.
Another implication which isn’t always considered is the impact a cyberattack will have in terms of patient trust
In the healthcare space, it can be even more tempting to pay off the attackers, due to the sensitivity of the information they manage to get hold of.
Another implication which isn’t always considered is the impact a cyberattack will have in terms of patient trust.
A cyberattack in which malicious actors manage to access sensitive data can lead to a loss of confidence in an organisation’s ability to safeguard data and can seriously damage its long-term reputation.
Defending against the bad actors
In today's digital age, the question is not if a healthcare organisation will face a cyberattack, but when. With that in mind, those in the sector must be ready to mitigate the effects and recover quickly. Here are some ways in which healthcare organisations can protect their data from attackers:
- Implement a data backup and recovery plan to safeguard essential data and ensure business continuity. Backup processes should capture all critical data and be executed at regular intervals. Coupled with a swift recovery process, data backup and recovery help minimise downtime and ensure business continuity when data is lost due to malicious activities.
- Develop and implement an ongoing cyber awareness programme to educate the entire organisation on the latest cyber threats and the policies to avoid them. The programme should be continually updated to reflect emerging threats and remain a critical line of defense in identifying and thwarting potential cybercrimes.
- Deploying advanced security technologies like firewalls, anti-malware tools, and intrusion detection systems that use AI and machine learning for predictive threat analysis and response.
- Regularly stress test and break systems to identify where the weak points are. Often organisations – especially within the public sector – implement security strategies and then wait until an incident occurs to see whether their framework is effective. With the regularity of attacks in the current landscape, this cannot adequately anticipate the scale at which breaches are attempted.
Patient data is necessary to provide efficient and essential healthcare services.
It is what makes it possible for medical professionals to diagnose patients, guarantees that patients receive the correct medication e.g. that which they are not allergic to, and aids in the advancement of breakthroughs and treatments which can save lives. Unfortunately, attackers are aware of this and will stop at nothing to take advantage of it.
Healthcare businesses will inevitably experience cyberattacks, but data loss doesn’t have to be inevitable. Cybersecurity technologies and data protection frameworks can strengthen defences and increase the healthcare sector's capacity to react quickly to new threats.
