Computer Hacker Holds Entire Hospital Hostage

A computer hacker demanded ransom before shutting down the electronic health record and email access at Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center for more than a week according to Susan B. Hall, writing for Fierce Health IT. Hall writes that the cyber criminals infected a system with malicious software and locked up files while they demand ransom to unlock them. Hackers also threatened to delete files if their demands are not met.

Hall reports that the Los Angeles Police Department and FBI are working with the hospital. In the meantime, staff at the hospital are making use of fax machines to document care, transmit lab results and share imaging screens. Patients are picking up laboratory results at the hospital since they are unable to receive them electronically.

Stephen Grimes, of the consulting firm Strategic Healthcare Technology Associates, told Hall that healthcare organizations must close the knowledge gap among the various staff members involved with medical devices to improve their cyber security preparedness. Biomedical engineers and clinicians must move more quickly to react to the vulnerabilities and risks inherent in these products.

Grimes believes that manufacturers must be brought into the collaboration to help clinical engineering and IT teams secure devices in a real-world environment. Hall quotes Grimes as stating that the average 500-bed hospital has more than 7, 500 medical devices with potential security risks that should be addressed.