It might come as a surprise to some, but hospital IT security is seriously lacking. Hospitals have been targeted by hackers for a while now, with several hospitals dealing with ransomware attacks just in the past few months, including facilities in Kentucky, California and Texas. Unfortunately, it now looks like the threat is even worse than predicted. Devices that were originally threatened include CT scanners, defibrillators and dialysis pumps. And now, a new wave of medical IoT devices are emerging with a correspondingly drastic rise in attacks. These hackers are not interested in shutting down the machines (thank goodness), but rather are attempting to retrieve confidential patient information.
Non-medical professionals may not realize that medical devices store detailed patient data. MRI machines and CT scanners keep records of all patients that have tests run through these devices. Most of these devices, which are not properly protected, are, however, connected to the Internet, making them a major target for hackers. Many of these medical devices run an older Windows versions so hackers are using older versions of malware to attack this medical equipment. What’s more, hackers know these medical devices do not have additional security protections, such as endpoint protection, making them extremely easy to attack. One of the key tools for these attacks is a very old type of worm called Conficker. Security firm TrapX Labs explained in further detail, “The malware utilized for this attack was specifically selected to exploit older versions of Windows…It enabled the attacker to install a backdoor within the enterprise, from which they could launch their campaign and quietly exfiltrate data and perhaps cause significant damage using a ransomware attack.”
Patient records have always been a high-value target for hackers.
There is even one hacker on the Dark Web selling three different databases of patient records, which equals more than 30,000 patient records. But why would someone purchase patient records?
Purchasing medical profiles goes beyond exploiting them for extortion purposes. With the proper patient data (usually an address), a hacker would be able to get prescriptions filled. And since the prescription is not over the counter, that means some, if not all, of the cost of the prescription would be covered by the insurance company. Can you guess what happens from there?
The pills can either be consumed by the hacker, or, more likely, the hacker will sell these pills for a steep cost on the Dark Web. And how are these goods sold and exchanged? Through Bitcoin, of course, which makes it almost untraceable.
So medical professionals, there is no better time than now to step up your Internet security. Not only should you upgrade your version of Windows, but it’s also critically important to enhance your security infrastructure. To improve your security further, you could even install Comodo’s Advanced Endpoint Protection to ensure that your patients’ confidential records stay confidential.
