According to new research conducted by think-tank The Ponemon Institute, in conjunction with cybersecurity company Censinet, the patient care implications of a ransomware attack on a hospital can be deadlier than people realize.
The results of the survey, based on answers from 597 IT and IT security professionals working in healthcare, paint a picture of hospitals struggling to protect against and deal with the fallout from ransomware attacks—and all of this at a time when healthcare has been feeling the strain of the coronavirus pandemic.
Just over a third (36%) of respondents at hospitals affected by a ransomware attack saw an increase in complications for patients following medical procedures, while seven in 10 saw delays in procedures and tests resulting in what’s described as “poor outcomes”. Seven in 10 patients also had a longer stay at the hospital due to the ongoing consequences of a ransomware attack.
One in five respondents who worked at a hospital that had been hit by ransomware said the incident lead to an increase in deaths.
Read the full article on ZDNet.
