Healthcare sector braces for rising cybersecurity threats in 2025
FLORIDA, UNITED STATES — Recent industry analysis reveals mounting cybersecurity challenges facing healthcare organizations globally, with ransomware attacks continuing to dominate security concerns heading into 2025.
Key security priorities
Health-ISAC’s comprehensive survey of nearly 200 healthcare executives and cybersecurity professionals identified five critical cybersecurity threats facing healthcare organizations.
Findings revealed ransomware deployments topping the list, followed by third-party breaches, data breaches, supply chain attacks, and zero-day exploits.
The findings reflect a significant shift in the threat landscape, with organizations expressing particular concern about third-party breaches using zero-day exploits. Three of the top five concerns relate to this scenario, similar to previous incidents like the MoveIT Managed File Transfer exploitation.
Organizations with both the highest and lowest cybersecurity budgets identified AI-enabled attacks as their primary concern for 2025 despite the collective consensus ranking ransomware deployments as the greatest threat.
Critical security landscape
The healthcare sector witnessed several devastating cyberattacks in 2024, highlighting systemic vulnerabilities.
In December 2023, patients at Integris Health System faced extortion attempts after a cyber attack compromised approximately 500,000 records. Victims were presented with options, including paying $50 to delete their data or $3 to view what information was compromised.
In February 2024, a major incident at Change Healthcare disrupted payment processing nationwide. “Millions of patients could no longer pay for treatment or medication” during the outage.
Another significant attack in May 2024 targeted Ascension Healthcare, affecting 140 hospitals and 40 senior care facilities across 19 states. The incident disrupted access to electronic health records and forced ambulance diversions.
Vulnerabilities in medical device security
Another critical area under scrutiny is the security of Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) devices. The proliferation of these devices has introduced new vulnerabilities, making them prime targets for cybercriminals.
Health-ISAC’s research underscores the need for healthcare organizations to enhance their device security measures and stay vigilant against attacks that could compromise patient safety.
Strengthening defenses and enhancing collaboration
Health-ISAC’s report serves as a call to action for healthcare organizations worldwide to fortify their cybersecurity defenses and collaborate more closely. By sharing intelligence and adopting advanced security measures, the sector can better protect itself against the evolving landscape of cyber threats.
This comprehensive analysis, based on detailed insights from Health-ISAC, underscores the ongoing and complex cybersecurity challenges facing the healthcare sector today. Organizations must adapt swiftly and collaboratively to safeguard sensitive data and ensure the continuity of care amidst these growing threats.
The survey, conducted in November 2024, included responses from various healthcare subsectors, including providers, pharmaceutical companies, payers, medical device manufacturers, and health IT organizations.
