Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center (HPMC) has seen its computer systems taken down by ransomware.
Due to the increase in global connectivity of healthcare technology, as well as the proliferation and popularisation of ransomware, commentators in the industry have made predictions regarding such cases.
It seems that HPMC does not have a dedicated department to deal with cyber crime. Thus, the hospital has had to call upon the FBI and LAPD to find those making the demands.
The network was taken offline, causing loss of both email access and patient data. Allen Stefanek, CEO and president of the hospital, conceded that malware had affected systems in the emergency room.
Troy Gill, security research manager at web security firm AppRiver, told SCMagazineUK.com that paying the hackers could make matters worse. He added:
“If you’ve been the victim of a ransomware attack and you’re contemplating paying the ransom, keep in mind that the only reason these thieves keep perpetrating these attacks is because people are paying them. If all of the victims stopped paying ransoms, they wouldn’t have a successful business model, whose core objective is to steal your money.”
Patient data is crucial, but then so is any customer data in any organisation. Such incidents as the attack reported above highlight the need for more cyber security jobs to be on the market. That starts with firms understanding the need for cyber defence and deciding to take proactive measures to combat this fast-growing form of crime.
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