It seems like every year, the world is setting a new record for the number of significant healthcare cybersecurity breaches. The problem is – while the industry is becoming better protected against these types of threats, the scale of the threat is also increasing.
Many of these attacks are fruitful for the assailants. Sometimes the only course of action for the victim of a ransomware attack, after the fact, is to pay the ransom. Unfortunately, success for the attacker only perpetuates a cycle of future attacks. But there are some pretty basic things you can do to mitigate your risk.
Breaking the Feedback Loop
As discussed in a recent article from Health Tech Magazine, the technological arms race between cyber-criminals and their targets is not a problem that’s going away any time soon. Every technology breakthrough that the healthcare sector adds to their arsenal to defend themselves against threats, you’ll find an equally potent weapon being added to the arsenal of bad actors.
The healthcare industry is no stranger to adopting new technology. But keeping pace with its relentless advance is another story. In fact, considerable majority of healthcare organizations are still taking advantage of legacy systems. But the cost-savings of hanging onto existing systems goes down the drain as you become a more attractive target to cyber-criminals. And that’s what happens as your tech ages.
Problems on the Horizon
A good example is Windows 10. Microsoft is planning on ending support for Windows 10 on October 14th, 2025. Following that date, Microsoft will not provide any future security updates. It’s still among the most popular operating systems in use today. But any vulnerabilities that already exist or are newly created or discovered, as of October 14th, will continue to exist in perpetuity.
But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Everyone is reliant on dozens of apps these days, from payment processing to scheduling. All it takes is one element in your tech stack to fall behind and you can be at risk. That’s why it’s important to take a holistic look at your systems.
Some experts recommend a modular approach. Because when you’re able to hot-swap components as needed, it’s much easier to reduce the risks of parts of your tech stack getting out-of-date.
Solutions You Can Use
Because you can’t stop the advance of technology, right now, the most pragmatic solution to defend yourself is to try to remain in the middle of the pack. When your technology falls too far behind, that’s when you become an obvious target. It also helps to take advantage of tools like FormDr that are made to adapt to ongoing changes in the technological and regulatory environment.
