“The Department of Veterans Affairs has a history of struggling to secure patient data. Recently, the Office of the Inspector General (IG) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO), highlighted the various security concerns the VA is facing. Although this is a lingering problem for the VA and many other healthcare organizations, there isn’t a clear solution on the horizon – instead, it may get worse.”
“In January of 2020, Microsoft will end support for Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows Mobile, which will leave millions of connected medical devices vulnerable to cyber attacks. In a recent webinar, Mike Bruchanski, Sr. Director, Product Management at BlackBerry Cylance, discussed how this end of support will impact healthcare organizations and what needs to be done to protect patient data…”
“The VA and other healthcare organizations need to understand the potentially devastating consequences this loss of support presents. With hospitals housing thousands of connected devices, patient data, and Wi-Fi, it becomes a prime target for bad actors with a vast cyber plane.”
“’If you walk around and OR or ER, you understand that there are devices in every hospital room. There are wireless networks and they are accessible to a lot of people,’ Bruchanski said. Healthcare organizations will need to get ahead of potential risks and protect patient data by understanding risk, evaluating their current security program, and categorizing risk for each device… ” Read the full article here.
Source: VA Cybersecurity in Question As Windows 7 is Retired – By Jackie Davis, December 17, 2019. Government Technology Insider.
