“With new threat vectors emerging every day, healthcare organizations are facing an unprecedented level of challenges to their security,” said Azi Cohen, CEO of CyberMDX. “Hospitals have a lot at stake — from revenue loss, to reputational damage, and most importantly patient safety. Our new report provides a critical look into the current state of medical device security and will help raise awareness of key issues and disconnects healthcare organizations are facing with their cybersecurity.”
Despite the growing frequency of cyber attacks, most hospital IT staffs say that cybersecurity is not a high priority. In a study conducted by CyberMDX in partnership with Philips that surveyed IT professionals and executives at healthcare centers, 89% of respondents said that cybersecurity is not a high priority spend. This comes despite almost half of the respondents saying they have shut down operations at some point in the last 6 months due to cybersecurity threats.
The survey found that mid-size hospitals have been most affected by cyber attacks with the average shut down lasting 10 hours at a rate of $45,700 per hour. Large hospitals reported average shut downs of 6.2 hours at $21,500 per hour.
The survey also showed that many hospital IT departments responded that the cybersecurity budget is insufficient and they are understaffed with cybersecurity professionals. With employees stretched thin and low budgets, the vulnerabilities of hospitals to cyber attacks will continue to grow until healthcare facilities prioritize cybersecurity.