Business Continuity Management / Disaster Recovery , COVID-19 , Critical Infrastructure Security
Why Healthcare Will Remain a Top Cyberattack Target in 2022
Paul Prudhomme of IntSights on Disturbing, Persistent TrendsTwo years into the pandemic, pharmaceutical firms remain a top target for cybercriminals, and that trend will undoubtedly persist, says former Department of Defense threat analyst Paul Prudhomme.
"Pharmaceutical companies have been a significant target for the theft of intellectual property by both nation-state actors and criminals," says Prudhomme, who is now head of the Threat Intelligence Advisory at security firm IntSights, a Rapid7 company. "This predates the pandemic - and will likely continue after the pandemic."
Overall, he says, "one of the main reasons criminals are interested in healthcare data is that it contains a lot of details, such as date of birth, Social Security numbers - the active ingredients for identity theft. You can get those data points from any number of places, but healthcare organizations are the richest sources."
Prudhomme says the proliferation of vaccination records, COVID-19 tests and vaccine passports expand the attack surface, and a lot of the information is being used in more public ways, which makes it more vulnerable.
In the interview (see audio link below photo), Prudhomme also discusses:
- Nation-state attack trends;
- The latest ransomware trends involving the healthcare sector;
- Security recommendations for healthcare entities to address the rise in cyberattacks.
Prudhomme is a former analyst with the U.S. Department of Defense and is now head of the Threat Intelligence Advisory at security firm IntSights, a Rapid7 company.