Stay updated with the latest healthcare cybersecurity trends, news, and tips to protect patient data and comply with medical industry security standards.
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Background for this topic.
Healthcare is the delivery of clinical care and related services through hospitals, clinics, laboratories, pharmacies, insurers, and connected medical devices. It depends on electronic health records (EHRs), patient identity systems, diagnostic and imaging platforms, medication and scheduling systems, and data exchanges between organizations. These environments hold sensitive health and payment information, while the availability and integrity of systems can affect treatment, diagnostics, and patient safety.
Security concerns include unauthorized access or disclosure of records, alteration of clinical data, and disruption of care through attacks on EHRs, connected devices, or third-party services. Defenses require risk-based access controls, strong authentication, network separation where appropriate, secure device and software maintenance, backups that support clinical continuity, and tested downtime and incident-response procedures. Vulnerability management must account for legacy systems and devices that cannot be patched quickly. Privacy and compliance obligations, such as HIPAA in the United States, shape how organizations collect, use, share, retain, and report health information.
Pharmaceutical companies typically have more mature cyber programs than other healthcare factions, but these firms also face unique risks involving their large attack surfaces, complex manufacturing, supply chains and sensitive intellectual property, said Joshua Mullen of Booz Allen Hamilton.
Ascension, one of the largest private healthcare systems in the United States, has revealed that a data breach disclosed last month affects the personal and healthcare information of over 430,000 patients. [...]
Union Health System Among Many Cerner Legacy Data Clients Affected by BreachAn Indiana health system is among the first healthcare organizations notifying regulators and thousands of people affected by the Oracle hack in January. Attackers compromised legacy patient data hosted by Cerner servers that were set to migrate to Oracle's cloud environment.
NIH, CMS Project Raises Patient Data Privacy Concerns, Advocates SayThe U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said it will build a data platform "allowing researchers to 'securely'" access data from Medicare and Medicaid claims, patient electronic medical records and consumer wearables to better understand autism spectrum disorder causes and treatments.
Medical device company Masimo Corporation warns that a cyberattack is impacting production operations and causing delays in fulfilling customers' orders. [...]
Industry experts at RSAC 2025 call for urgent accountability in addressing technology's negative impact on youth, highlighting concerns about internet anonymity, mental health, and the growing disconnect between generations.
SolarWinds CISO Tim Brown's Case Shows Personal, Legal and Health Risks for CISOsCISOs face tremendous stress in dealing with regulatory scrutiny and legal exposure in the wake of a data breach. SolarWinds CISO Tim Brown shares the personal and professional impact of Securities and Exchange Commission charges against him after the 2020 SolarWinds supply chain attack.