Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has intensified concerns for U.S.-based medical systems that are hoping to avoid potential cyberattacks from Russian hackers.

While cybersecurity threats to healthcare and the medtech industry — including ransomware — have grown during the pandemic, the conflict has raised the threat level.

Nick Yuran, CEO of medical device security consulting firm Harbor Labs and who has worked in U.S. intelligence as a Russian linguist-analyst for 10 years before moving to the private sector, contends that given the “talents and resources” available to a state-sponsored actor such as Russia, the damage to America’s healthcare system potentially could be catastrophic.

“We typically think of energy and finance as the most high-profile targets of a state-sponsored cyberattack, but an attack on healthcare infrastructure could be equally as disruptive,” Yuran said. “A targeted cyberattack against military healthcare organizations, such as Military Health System or VA facilities, might be intended as a military operation. But, there would be no way to guarantee that such an attack would not inadvertently make its way into civilian healthcare since there are so many common resources and assets.”

Read the full article at MedTech Dive.