magazine

Healthcare:
new cyber risks
From doctors using smartphones at work to connected
devices with password vulnerabilities, there are
numerous cyber risks facing the health industry
Heart defibrillators ‘face cyber attack’
In 2013, the risks of “connected”
healthcare devices were shown off
starkly in America: 300 gadgets –
including heart defibrillators and patient
monitors – had dangerous password
vulnerability that could have been
exploited by cyber attackers, according
to the Food & Drug Administration (FDA).
“The vulnerability could be exploited to
potentially change critical settings and/
or modify device firmware,” it warned.
Cyber war ‘inside the human body’
Europol’s European Cybercrime
Center and the International Cyber
Security Protection Alliance claim that
medical implants could be targeted
by cybercriminals – and that even
augmented-reality devices used by
patients could be vulnerable, with
attacks built to create hallucinations.
Should we be ‘appy’ when doctors
bring their own?
Most hospitals now permit clinicians
to BYOD – bring your own device –
to the workplace. PwC’s Top Health
Industry Issues 2013 report said that
85% of hospitals allow this. Just last
August, the United States Computer
Emergency Readiness Team released
a statement saying it was aware
of a breach of ‘sensitive patient
identification information’ affecting
some 4.5 million patients.
Medical data – is it secure enough?
The Identity Theft Resources Center
claims that the medical industry
accounted for 43% of all data breaches
in 2014. ESET senior researcher Stephen
Cobb says, “Healthcare has seen rapid
growth in the use of digital systems.
But despite a regimen of rules aimed at
safeguarding the privacy and security
of patient data, in the US the sector is
currently rife with security breaches.”
Medical phishing: a new frontier
Cybercriminals have become smarter
at impersonating banks, but new
phishing campaigns use cancer scares
to target victims. Emails purporting
to be blood-test results go on to
infect computers when opened. In
one campaign in Britain, the National
Institute for Health and Care Excellence
(NICE) said, “ We’re aware a spam email
is being sent regarding cancer-test
results. This email is not from NICE.
If you have received the email, do not
open the attachments.”
Leaks can damage your health
Security issues that lead to information
about medical conditions leaking can
cause serious financial and emotional
harm – and researchers have found
that even “secure” browsing may not be
private. They revealed a technique for
identifying individual Web pages visited
“securely,” with up to 89% accuracy,
exposing data such as health and
financial details and sexual orientation.
Images © Rex Features
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