Η Ascension, one of the largest private health care systems in the United States, put some systems offline, because of a cyber attack or as it states because of a "incident cybersecurity“.
Ascension operates 140 hospitals and 40 senior care facilities in 19 states and the District of Columbia. It also employs 8,500 providers, has 35,000 affiliated providers and 134,000 associates.
“On Wednesday, 8 May, we identified unusual activity in selected systems technology networks, which we now believe is due to a cybersecurity incident“, stated Ascension for the cyber attack.
The agency says it immediately took some of the systems offline to prevent the spread of the attack. In addition, it immediately began Research and restoration work. Business partners have also been notified to disconnect from the organisation's systems until the issue has been addressed.
See also: University System of Georgia: data breach due to MOVEit attacks
Clinical operations were interrupted
Ascension said the cyber attack also interrupted clinical operations. An ongoing study is assessing the impact and duration of the break.
The relevant authorities were alerted to the cyber attack and experts were recruited cybersecurity of Mandiant to assist in the investigation and recovery process.
Healthcare: Protection against cyber-attacks
One of the most effective protection strategies is the staff training. Staff who are aware of the techniques used by attackers can recognise and to a certain extent avoid cyber attacks.
The application updated security protocols is another important strategy. This includes regularly updating the Software and systems, installing the latest security updates and implementing procedures to protect data.
See also: DocGo: Cyber attack led to data breach
The use of advanced tools Security, such as intrusion protection systems and cyber-attack detection and prevention tools, can help counter threats before they cause damage.
In addition, hospitals should implement access policies to control who has access to the data of patients. This may include the use of credentials such as usernames and passwords, as well as implementing policies that require staff to change passwords access them regularly.
They may, in addition, use external security services to monitor their networks for possible attacks. These services may include monitoring network traffic, detecting "anomalies" and reacting to possible threats.
See also: New Latrodectus malware attacks use Microsoft themes
Finally, the creation of a a response plan in the event of Violation can be vital. This plan should include threat analysis, identification of attacks, isolation of the System that has been compromised and restoring systems to a secure state.
Source : www.bleepingcomputer.com
