Hackers Are Targeting Medical Data: How To Protect Your Files

With data breaches, cyber theft and other types of digital crimes becoming more and more common with each passing day, medical file protection is a topic on the minds of healthcare providers all over the country. While the types of massive breaches that strike corporations like Sony may make headlines, the fact of the matter is that hackers are actually targeting healthcare providers and medical data in general at an alarming frequency.

Better Protect You Medical Data

Why Hackers Go After Medical Data

One of the keys to protecting medical data involves a deeper understanding of just why this type of information is so valuable in the first place. If a hacker were to steal a credit card, they would likely be able to make a few hundred dollars in fraudulent charges before the card was deactivated. If a hacker was able to steal medical data, on the other hand, the damage can be much more severe.

The type of information that can be obtained in a healthcare facility data breach can be used to purchase drugs, medical equipment and other items - all of which can be sold at an incredible premium on the black market. Because the "return on investment" (for lack of a better term) is so much higher in a cyber breach of a healthcare facility, the types of people with malicious intentions who do this kind of thing for a living are going after these targets with increasing frequency. When you consider that healthcare facilities are also lagging behind in terms of medical file protection in general, you're looking at a situation that is too good for many to pass up.

The Techniques That Hackers Are Using to Target Medical Data

According to a recent study, 2016 will quickly become the year of the ransomware attack - at least as far as healthcare professionals are concerned. Ransomware is a particular type of malware that actually denies the user access to not only a particular machine, but also the important information contained within it. This is particularly concerning to doctors, as the computers they use are often employed to help make actionable decisions about patient care, to monitor medical treatment options and to perform other life-saving tasks.

In a ransomware attack, all of the information on a computer is encrypted. Only by paying a ransom to an attacker (hence the name) will the machine be unlocked again. These ransoms are often in the thousands of dollars or more depending on the situation, making them an issue that doctors will need to address sooner rather than later. As even the FBI has often advised businesses to just pay the ransom to regain access to a machine as the easiest option, employee education is one of the major keys to preventing this type of situation altogether.