Two of the biggest issues of 2020 were coronavirus and cyber crime. For healthcare organizations they have merged as cyber criminals target them.
What is their goal? In a word, information - valuable information that can be sold. For nation states it can be information about vaccines. For ordinary criminals it is patient data - not just medical records but other personal information such as credit/debit cards, bank accounts, driver license and Social Security numbers. Even small organizations can be targeted for data in their computer systems.
The vaccine rollout has increased the challenge to supply chains. Ransomware is holding organizations' data systems hostage. According to Cyber Security Intelligence, last October five hospitals received ransom demands of at least $1 million in a single day.
As threats continue to grow in 2021, healthcare organizations must increase cyber security and back up their data regularly.