The healthcare industry is one of the hot favorite targets for hackers. The average hospital uses an average of 17 network-connected devices per hospital bed and Deloitte predicts the market for internet of medical things i.e. IoMT devices will be $52.2 billion in 2022. Hence, the surface area is gigantic. There are many other challenges the healthcare industry faces, but what makes this sector more vulnerable is the urgency of the situation. Each passing movement risks patients’ lives and can create catastrophes.
Here are the five eye-opening incidents that show how vulnerable healthcare IoT devices can be.
1) Hackers Accessing Pacemakers Remotely
Muddy Waters Capital and security firm MedSec discovered that St. Jude’s implantable cardiac devices like pacemakers and defibrillators were suffering from security vulnerabilities. Hackers can easily access those devices remotely, tamper with programming commands, and put patients’ health at risk. St. Jude bought these devices from Abbott, but it was St.Jude hospital staff who was responsible to deal with the updates and patch management.
After learning about the vulnerabilities, FDA urged the patients who implanted pacemakers at St. Jude to visit the healthcare facility immediately and get the firmware update in person. It would take three minutes and can't be done at home. They further warned patients that if the update is incomplete, they are at the risk of a loss of programmed settings and diagnostic data, along with a cyber-attack. The hackers can drain off the battery, too, and cause the device lose its functionality.
2) Hackers Disabled Düsseldorf hospital’s Emergency Services
In September 2020, a hacker deployed a ransomware attack on Düsseldorf University Hospital in Germany and disabled emergency care services. As a result, the hospital had to postpone a critical patient’s emergency operation and transfer her to another hospital which was 19 miles away. As the patient didn't get the needed medical treatment at the time, she lost her life.
Although, later on, investigators declared that the patient's condition was so severe that she likely would not have survived irrespective of the cyberattack, this incident is eye-opening. If hackers can access the IoMT devices, servers, and databases to disrupt the emergency services, they can put many patients' lives in jeopardy.
3) Campbell County Health’s Systemwide Computers Crippled Down
On 20 September 2019, hackers targeted Campbell County Health (CCH) and crippled down their computers, which affected more than 20 facilities and clinics associated with CCH. The hospital had to transfer critical patients to the nearest hospital, which was 70 miles away. Many departments like Respiratory Therapy, Sleep Clinic, Radiology, etc. stopped admitting outpatient orders. Numerous appointments needed to be canceled and surgeries were postponed. It was a ransomware attack and it took CCH 17 days to restore everything.
4) IoMT Devices Using Social Media!
Ordr analyzed more than 5 million IoMT devices and found some shocking facts. According to its report, it found Facebook and YouTube apps running on MRI and CT scan machines! These machines are connected with monitors in which the healthcare provider can monitor the test results and make the reports. But staff used these connected monitors to surf the internet and various social media sites.
This can be a dangerous thing. It is convenient for hackers to deliver a piece of malware through insecure websites, redirects, malvertising (malware-laden advertising), and corrupted games. If that happens, attackers can view all the patients' test results and misuse them. They can also remotely access those devices and disrupt their functionalities to deploy a ransomware attack.
5) IoMT devices and Non-Essential IoT devices Use Same VLAN and Internet
In the same Ordr research, it was found that IoT devices like printers, servers, vending machines, and parking lot gates were on the same VLANs as critical medical devices. In fact, 75% of healthcare deployments had VLAN violations.
Moreover, 95% of medical facilities had devices on which Amazon Alexa and Echo devices were active on the same network. Such voice assistants can be used for spying and recording medical staff's sensitive conversations about the patient's health. It will not only violate the HIPAA regulations but also give hackers a chance to misuse patients' confidential information to blackmail them.
Recommended Security Practices For Healthcare Industry
Cybersecurity is all about staying one step ahead of hackers. This excellent infographic summarizes some good security practices for all the industries, including healthcare.
Image Source: Cyphere
Top comments (0)