The Growing Ransomware Crisis in Houston Healthcare: Time for Action as Attacks Reach Record Levels
With ransomware attacks now affecting two-thirds of healthcare providers and costing an average of $2.57 million per incident in 2024, robust cybersecurity measures are critical to protect both patient care and organizational operations
The Growing Ransomware Crisis in Houston Healthcare: Time for Action as Attacks Reach Record Levels
As 2024 draws to a close, the healthcare sector faces an unprecedented surge in ransomware attacks, creating what experts are now calling a direct threat to global public health and security. The recent attacks on Change Healthcare and Ascension—which caused widespread disruption across the U.S. healthcare system—have demonstrated just how vulnerable our healthcare infrastructure has become.
A Growing Crisis
According to Sophos’ State of Ransomware in Healthcare 2024 report, 67% of healthcare organizations were hit by ransomware in the past year—up from 60% in 2023. This represents a four-year high since 2021 and is particularly concerning as it contrasts with declining ransomware rates in other sectors. Healthcare now reports the second-highest attack rate globally, tied with energy/utilities and just behind federal government targets.
The impact of these attacks continues to worsen:
- Organizations are taking longer to recover, with only 22% recovering within a week (down from 47% in 2023)
- 37% of organizations needed more than a month to recover, up from 28% in 2023
- The average cost of recovery has reached $2.57 million, excluding ransom payments
- 53% of affected organizations paid ransoms to recover their data
- The median ransom payment was $1.5 million, with an average payment of $4.4 million
- 95% of attacks attempted to compromise backup system
Percentage of demands for the ransom amount (Source: Sophos The State of Ransomware in Healthcare 2024, p10)
“A Direct and Systemic Risk to Global Public Health”
Speaking before the UN Security Council on November 8, 2024, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasized that “ransomware and other cyberattacks on hospitals and health facilities are not just issues of security and confidentiality—they can be issues of life and death.” This sentiment was echoed by Eduardo Conrado, President of Ascension, who stated that ransomware attacks on healthcare “pose a direct and systemic risk to global public health and security.”
The impact extends far beyond individual facilities:
- Emergency departments become overwhelmed with redirected patients
- Surgeries and critical procedures face delays or cancellation
- Essential patient data becomes inaccessible
- Critical medical devices may be rendered inoperable
- Medication management and prescription systems face disruption
- Neighboring facilities face increased strain from patient overflow
The Role of Prevention and Response
Healthcare organizations face unique cybersecurity challenges that make them particularly attractive targets for ransomware attacks. According to cybersecurity experts, several key factors contribute to the sector’s vulnerability:
Legacy Systems and Infrastructure: Many healthcare organizations rely on older technology and infrastructure controls that are harder to secure than modern systems. This legacy technology often lacks modern security features and can be difficult or impossible to patch, creating security gaps that attackers can exploit. The Sophos report indicates that healthcare and energy sectors have the highest percentage of devices impacted in attacks (58% and 62% respectively) largely due to these infrastructure challenges.
Complex Device Networks: The average hospital network includes thousands of connected medical devices, from CT scanners to patient monitoring systems to infusion pumps. According to healthcare cybersecurity experts, approximately 70% of a hospital’s endpoints are not computers but rather medical devices, creating an expansive and complex attack surface that’s difficult to secure.
Resource Constraints: The healthcare sector faces significant staffing and resource limitations when it comes to cybersecurity. Recent research shows that just 14% of healthcare organizations say their IT security teams are fully staffed, while over half report needing more help and 30% describe themselves as understaffed or severely understaffed. This puts many organizations in a state of continual cybersecurity triage.
Operational Continuity Requirements: Unlike other industries that might be able to temporarily shut down systems during an attack, healthcare organizations must maintain continuous operations to protect patient safety. This operational imperative often forces healthcare providers to pay ransoms rather than risk extended system outages.
High-Value Data: Healthcare records contain a wealth of sensitive personal, medical, and financial information that makes them particularly valuable to cybercriminals. This comprehensive data can be used for various types of fraud and identity theft, making healthcare organizations attractive targets for both encryption and data theft attacks.
Percentage of healthcare attacks (Source: Sophos The State of Ransomware in Healthcare 2024, p5)
How CinchOps Can Help Secure Your Environment
As healthcare organizations face these growing threats, CinchOps offers comprehensive cybersecurity solutions designed specifically for the healthcare sector:
- 24/7 Monitoring and Response: Our security operations center provides continuous monitoring of your systems, detecting and responding to threats before they can escalate into full-scale attacks.
- Backup Protection: With 95% of healthcare ransomware attacks targeting backup systems, our secure backup solutions ensure your critical data remains protected and recoverable.
- Staff Training: We provide comprehensive cybersecurity training for healthcare staff, addressing the human element that often serves as the entry point for attacks.
- Compliance and Reporting: Our solutions help maintain compliance with HIPAA and other regulatory requirements while providing detailed reporting for stakeholder transparency.
- Incident Response Planning: We help develop and maintain comprehensive incident response plans, ensuring your organization can respond quickly and effectively to any cyber threat.
The ransomware threat to healthcare isn’t going away—in fact, it’s intensifying. Organizations must take proactive steps to protect their systems, their patients, and their operations.
Contact CinchOps today to learn how we can help strengthen your cybersecurity posture and protect your organization against the growing ransomware threat. Visit our Security Assessment Services page and request your FREE assessment.
