Cyberattacks: What can radiology do to boost protection?

The 2021 cyberattack on the Irish healthcare system caused major disruption. Now authors from Cork have written about their experiences and how they've modified their approach to cybersecurity and implemented plans similar to those made for natural disasters. In a study published on January 2 in the Journal of Cancer Policy, clinicians at the hospital assessed the impact of the incident and provided a framework for other institutions to mitigate the impact of such attacks. “The sudden, immediate, and complete shutdown of the radiology information system (RIS) and picture archiving and communications system (PACS) was profound and devastating in our tertiary referral center with a high volume and complex case mix,” wrote medical oncologist Dr. Rachel Keogh, and colleagues. Cork University Hospital is a level 5 hospital with 800 beds, 25,500 in-patient admissions, 27,000-day cases, and 58,000 emergency cases every year and employs over 4,000 staff. It is one of eight adult National Cancer Control Program (NCCP)-affiliated cancer centers and one of 54 acute hospitals in Ireland run by the Health Service Executive (HSE). On the morning of May 14, 2021, the HSE received reports from hospitals of an attack on encrypted systems via Conti Ransomware. The source of the cyberattack originated from a phishing email sent on March 18, 2021, to a workstation whose antivirus software was set to monitor mode and consequently did not block resultant malicious commands. In the ensuing...
Source: AuntMinnie.com Headlines - Category: Radiology Authors: Tags: Imaging Informatics Cybersecurity Source Type: news