Report: Hacker Attacks Against Healthcare Organizations Up 85 Percent

SecureWorks has seen an 85 percent increase in the number of attempted attacks directed toward its healthcare clients by Internet hackers. Attempted attacks have increased from an average of 11,146 per healthcare client per day in the first half of 2007 to an average of 20,630 per healthcare client per day in the last half of 2007 through January.

Hunter King and Don Jackson, security researchers with SecureWorks Counter Threat Unit, attribute the increase in attacks to several factors. These include the increase in client-side attacks (attacks against the employees' PCs), the fact that healthcare organizations have large attack surfaces in which hackers can try and break in, the volume of personal, identifiable information and health insurance credentials being stored by healthcare organizations, and the valuable computing resources available to healthcare entities.

1. Hackers Launch Client-side Attacks Against Healthcare Organizations

Client-side attacks, where the attackers target the employee'sPC, make up many of the attempted attacks seen against SecureWorks' healthcare clients.

"This is true not only for our healthcare clients, but also for our clients in the financial, retail, technology, and utility sectors," said King. "Client-side attacks have continued to be popular with hackers because compromising an employee's pc is often much easier than hacking directly into an organization's database.

"Many times it is simpler to compromise an employee pc because an employee's position often requires them to have access to the web, whereas a company's databases and backend servers are usually not open to outside networks. Taking control of employee computers are also desirable because they have authority to communicate to a company's backend systems, whereas communications coming from an IP address outside the network is often blocked. And once a hacker gets behind an organization's firewall, there are many ways to gain access to the backend infrastructure."

Some of the most popular types of malware being used in client-side attacks are the Rbot, Storm Worm, Prg and Pinch trojans.

2. Healthcare Organizations Possess Large Attack Surfaces

Often times, healthcare organizations are architected with very open networks so as to conduct necessary business activities such as billing, the transfer of patient records, and communication with different physician networks. These open networks give hackers more openings in which to try and break in making healthcare organizations prime targets.

3. Healthcare Organizations Store Personal, Identifiable Information, Banking information and Health Insurance Credentials

Healthcare organizations store a lot of valuable personal, identifiable information such as SSNs, names, addresses, age, in addition to banking and credit card information. This makes healthcare organizations extremely valuable targets because with this information scammers can develop complete profiles on victims making them ripe for identity theft.

Health Insurance Credentials. According to Don Jackson, who spent eight years working in healthcare IT security prior to coming to SecureWorks, healthcare organizations store other valuable information such as patients' health insurance credentials.

Information from patients, who are members of preferred medical network plans, is sought after by certain hackers because these patients have benefits enabling them to visit any doctor in the country without getting approval.

The hackers can then turnaround and sell the credentials to criminals specializing in illegal immigration kits. These credentials are highly desirable to illegal immigrants in need of healthcare services.

"These credentials information is usually stolen via targeted cyber attacks, which often consist of SQL Injection and File Inclusion attacks, are although they are not as frequent as client-side attacks, I have seen several cases where health insurance credentials were sold to criminals in the counterfeit document racket. A lot of this activity took place in Central and South America," said Jackson.

4. Healthcare Organizations Contain Large Numbers of Computing Resources

Healthcare organizations usually have high-bandwidth networks, networks with lots of PCs connected to it, and operations that run 24x7. These computing resources make healthcare entities a very attractive target to hackers because they not only have lots of PCs that can be harvested for valuable data, but these computers can be turned into spam bots. Additionally, the high bandwidth of their networks and the computing power of their servers make them a prime target giving hackers lots of resources in which to run large phishing campaigns, spam operations, etc.

Featured

  • Smarter Access Starts with Flexibility

    Today’s workplaces are undergoing a rapid evolution, driven by hybrid work models, emerging smart technologies, and flexible work schedules. To keep pace with growing workplace demands, buildings are becoming more dynamic – capable of adapting to how people move, work, and interact in real-time. Read Now

  • Trends Keeping an Eye on Business Decisions

    Today, AI continues to transform the way data is used to make important business decisions. AI and the cloud together are redefining how video surveillance systems are being used to simulate human intelligence by combining data analysis, prediction, and process automation with minimal human intervention. Many organizations are upgrading their surveillance systems to reap the benefits of technologies like AI and cloud applications. Read Now

  • The Future is Happening Outside the Cloud

    For years, the cloud has captivated the physical security industry. And for good reason. Remote access, elastic scalability and simplified maintenance reshaped how we think about deploying and managing systems. But as the number of cameras grows and resolutions push from HD to 4K and beyond, the cloud’s limits are becoming unavoidable. Bandwidth bottlenecks. Latency lags. Rising storage costs. These are not abstract concerns. Read Now

  • Right-Wing Activist Charlie Kirk Dies After Utah Valley University Shooting

    Charlie Kirk, a popular conservative activist and founder of Turning Point USA, died Wednesday after being shot during an on-campus event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah Read Now

  • The Impact of Convergence Between IT and Physical Security

    For years, the worlds of physical security and information technology (IT) remained separate. While they shared common goals and interests, they often worked in silos. Read Now

New Products

  • Compact IP Video Intercom

    Viking’s X-205 Series of intercoms provide HD IP video and two-way voice communication - all wrapped up in an attractive compact chassis.

  • Unified VMS

    AxxonSoft introduces version 2.0 of the Axxon One VMS. The new release features integrations with various physical security systems, making Axxon One a unified VMS. Other enhancements include new AI video analytics and intelligent search functions, hardened cybersecurity, usability and performance improvements, and expanded cloud capabilities

  • PE80 Series

    PE80 Series by SARGENT / ED4000/PED5000 Series by Corbin Russwin

    ASSA ABLOY, a global leader in access solutions, has announced the launch of two next generation exit devices from long-standing leaders in the premium exit device market: the PE80 Series by SARGENT and the PED4000/PED5000 Series by Corbin Russwin. These new exit devices boast industry-first features that are specifically designed to provide enhanced safety, security and convenience, setting new standards for exit solutions. The SARGENT PE80 and Corbin Russwin PED4000/PED5000 Series exit devices are engineered to meet the ever-evolving needs of modern buildings. Featuring the high strength, security and durability that ASSA ABLOY is known for, the new exit devices deliver several innovative, industry-first features in addition to elegant design finishes for every opening.