Cybersecurity news for hospitals and health systems

Petersburg (Alaska) Medical Center recently notified patients that a hospital employee had wrongfully viewed their medical records, Petersburg-based community radio station KFSK reports. 

Hospitals are increasingly becoming victims of cyberattacks as the workforce sees major changes amid the pandemic. 

The National Security Agency has released guidance on the zero-trust security model with recommendations to implement zero trust within networks. The zero-trust security model is a coordinated system strategy that assumes breaches are inevitable or have already occurred.

Hackers recently broke into Oxford University's biochemical systems and COVID-19 research and offered the information online for sale, according to a Feb. 25 Forbes report. 

King of Prussia, Pa.-based Universal Health Services lost $67 million from a malware attack last year, which caused patients to go elsewhere for care and incurred expenses to restore its operating and IT systems, according to a Feb. 26 Wall…

Elgin, N.D.-based Jacobson Memorial Hospital and Care Center informed 1,547 patients of a data breach in a Feb. 23 notice.

In February, 22 organizations reported to HHS that 351,709 individuals were affected by data breaches.

Griffin, Ga.-based Family Medical Center, part of Gore Medical Management, recently began notifying patients that their personal information may have been exposed through a hacking incident in 2017.

When hackers infiltrated the European Medicines Agency systems late last year and leaked vaccine data from Pfizer and Moderna online, it signaled a new type of cyberattack that could have drastic effects on public health efforts.

University Hospital in Newark, N.J., notified consumers that an unauthorized individual gained access to the hospital's computer systems, in a notice published Feb. 23.