By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    improving patient experience
    6 Ways to Improve Patient Satisfaction Within Hospitals
    December 1, 2021
    degree for healthcare job
    What Are The Health Benefits Of Having A Degree?
    March 9, 2022
    custom software development is changing healthcare
    Digital Customer Journey Mapping and its Importance for Healthcare
    July 21, 2022
    Latest News
    Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
    May 16, 2025
    Learn how to Renew your Medical Card in West Virginia
    May 16, 2025
    Choosing the Right Supplement Manufacturer for Your Brand
    May 1, 2025
    Engineering Temporary Hospitals for Extreme Weather
    April 24, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Can Thinking Younger Make You Live Longer?
    April 20, 2011
    Image
    Obesity’s Outlook Unchanged
    June 13, 2011
    When It’s An Emergency Elderly Not Treated As Well in Hospitals
    July 16, 2011
    Latest News
    Building Smarter Care Teams: Aligning Roles, Structure, and Clinical Expertise
    May 18, 2025
    The Critical Role of Healthcare in Personal Injury Recovery: A Comprehensive Guide for Victims
    May 14, 2025
    The Backbone of Successful Trials: Clinical Data Management
    April 28, 2025
    Advancing Your Healthcare Career through Education and Specialization
    April 16, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: 5 Worst Cyber Attacks of 2017 So Far
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > eHealth > Medical Records > 5 Worst Cyber Attacks of 2017 So Far
eHealthMedical RecordsNewsTechnology

5 Worst Cyber Attacks of 2017 So Far

Meghan Sheerin
Last updated: February 5, 2021 8:54 am
Meghan Sheerin
Share
5 Min Read
SHARE

As the third quarter of 2017 comes to a close, the major news outlets seem to have almost daily stories about the massive data breach that the credit data monitoring company, Equifax, discovered in late July. Given that almost half of the entire population of the United States might have had their personal and financial records exposed to cyberthieves in this breach, this news coverage is understandable. The news cycle focus on the Equifax breached obscured many of the other cyberattacks that have plagued businesses, healthcare providers, and government organizations in 2017. Five of the more egregious attacks are as follows:

  1. In early September 2017, the United States Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) disclosed that hackers had breached its ?EDGAR? electronic filing system some time in 2016, and that they might have used stolen information to engage in illegal stock trading. This cyberattack raises a number of crucial questions regarding the cybersecurity of the government?s network systems, when and how long it might take to detect a cyberattack, and an organization?s obligation to disclose a cyberattack to parties that might be affected by it.

 

  1. Cyberattackers sent shockwaves through England?s and Scotland?s National Health Service in May 2017 by launching a ?Wannacry? ransomware attack and demanding more than $500,000 to release frozen files, along with threats to delete those files if the Health Service failed to pay the ransom. Over a several-hours period, that attack spread to computers in more than 100 countries before technicians were able to stop it. This attack apparently did not compromise any patient data, but it did expose a significant weakness in the administration of the National Health Service?s information systems organization.

 

  1. Also in May 2017, Molina Healthcare, a U.S.-based Medicaid and Affordable Care Act insurer, disclosed that a security flaw in its network had potentially exposed confidential healthcare records of almost five million patients to hackers. According to at least one analysis, Molina could have easily remedied the flaw that exposed those records. Moreover, experts believe that similar flaws continue to exist and to expose patient information in the networks of many other healthcare organizations.

 

More Read

Image
Cutting the Cord in Ultrasound Systems
Drug Cos. Using REMS to Delay Generic Competition
HIT Innovation Founder Stories:Jakob Jønck, Co-Founder, Endomondo
Time Thieves
The 128-Byte Data Field That Could Save Lives and Billions of Dollars
  1. In June 2017, a group of hackers in the Ukraine launched the ?Petya? ransomware attack against multiple international companies, including shipping and infrastructure organizations across Europe. This attack raised the scepter of government-sponsored cyber attacks, as cybersecurity experts theorized that this attack was catalyzed by entities with political connections and motives.

 

  1. Earlier in 2017, the internet infrastructure entity, Cloudflare, revealed that a bug in its network had caused regular leaks of sensitive personal data from six million customers across the internet. This data leak was not catalyzed by a cyber attack, and Cloudflare fixed the bug quickly. The company?s experience, however, reveals the risks of exposure of personal data when networks and systems are interconnected, and how those risks are elevated when one node in a network contains a flaw or weakness.

These situations show that healthcare entities are not the only organizations that have been targeted by cyber attackers in 2017.Nonetheless, healthcare providers and medical service organizations will remain high on the cyber attack target list because hackers know that healthcare cybersecurity tends to be weak, and that healthcare data is very valuable on the secondary dark web market. Healthcare providers can erect multiple technical defenses against cyber attacks, but even the best defensive systems will not stop every data breach. When a data breach does occur, a healthcare organization will likely face substantial direct costs and third-party liabilities, as well as large fines and expenses levied by regulatory bodies. Healthcare cyber insurance is the last and final defensive measure that healthcare organizations can rely upon to stem the financial losses associated with a cyber attack. The pace of cyber attacks in 2017 shows no signs of slowing down. The sooner a healthcare organization procures cyber insurance, the sooner it will be protected from potentially ruinous financial losses.

Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

Clinical Expertise
Building Smarter Care Teams: Aligning Roles, Structure, and Clinical Expertise
Health care
May 18, 2025
Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
Health
May 15, 2025
Learn how to Renew your Medical Card in West Virginia
Learn how to Renew your Medical Card in West Virginia
Health
May 15, 2025
Dr. Klaus Rentrop Shares Acute Myocardial Infarction heart treatment
Dr. Klaus Rentrop Shares Acute Myocardial Infarction
Cardiology
May 13, 2025

You Might also Like

eHealthHealth carePublic Health

Addressing Addiction In Primary Care

September 21, 2018
Screen Shot 2015-09-14 at 7.29.36 AM
Medical InnovationsSpecialties

Technology advances in spine surgery

September 15, 2015
big-data
eHealth

5 New Value Pathways Fueling the Big Data Revolution in Healthcare

April 17, 2013
Physician Blogging
BusinesseHealth

3 Ways a Physician Blog Will Enhance Your Web Presence

June 10, 2014
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?