Supply Chain Attacks Affecting 68% of Healthcare Workers
An analysis of the impact of cybersecurity incidents on healthcare organizations was conducted in a recent report by Proofpoint. The report reveals that 92% of healthcare organizations surveyed experienced at least one cyber attack in the past year, up from 88% in 2023, with 69% reporting disruptions to patient care.
Among those affected by the most common types of attacks – cloud compromise, ransomware, supply chain, and business email compromise (BEC) – 56% reported poor outcomes for patients due to delays in procedures and tests, 53% saw an increase in medical procedure complications, and 28% noted higher patient mortality rates.
The survey, which included 648 IT and security practitioners from healthcare organizations in the US, found that supply chain attacks had the most significant impact on patient care. A majority of respondents reported supply chain attacks, with 82% stating it disrupted patient care. BEC attacks were most likely to result in delays in procedures and tests, with ransomware causing longer lengths of stay and patient transfers to other facilities.
Over half of respondents believe their organizations are vulnerable to ransomware attacks, and those that experienced such attacks reported an average of four incidents over two years. Concerns about insecure mobile apps have risen to become a top cybersecurity threat, with text messaging and email being the most targeted collaboration tools.
More than 90% of organizations experienced data loss incidents in the past two years, impacting patient care in over half of cases. Employee negligence, accidental data loss, and improper handling of sensitive data were cited as the primary causes of data loss incidents.
Lack of in-house expertise and clear leadership are seen as primary challenges to achieving strong cybersecurity, although organizations are taking steps to address employee awareness of cybersecurity threats. AI is being increasingly used in cybersecurity, with over half of respondents indicating its effectiveness in improving cybersecurity posture.
