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FBI issues warning about record number of US hospital hacks that led to death of a nine-month-old baby
America's hospitals are under attack as a new report has found that the public healthcare system has been hit harder than any other sector.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released its latest internet crime report, revealing that in 2023, nearly 1,200 organizations were affected by ransomware. Of those, 250 were submitted by medical groups - the most of 16 sectors.
However, experts have warned that hospital attacks don't just steal a patient's information, but pose a serious threat to public safety. Due to such cyberattacks, Americans were blocked from receiving lifesaving medication and in one case, a nine-month-old baby lost her life.
Cybersecurity expert Steven McKeon told DailyMail.com that rickety infrastructures and outdated security systems have made it too easy for hackers to infect networks with ransomware, saying that the situation will only get worse.
Teiranni Kidd's (pictured) daughter died nine months after she was born because doctor's didn't know the umbilical cord was wrapped around the baby's neck. A cyberattack had shut down the computers needed to monitor the baby's heartbeat
A cyberattack caused Jes Kraus (right) to be denied radiation indefinitely when it shut down the computer systems in 2023
Experts at the Ponemon Institute, an independent research group that studies critical security issues, surveyed more than 600 health care facilities, finding mortality rates increased at a quarter of locations following a ransomware attack.
While the FBI report noted 2023 was an all-time high for hospital hacks, such attacks have been rampant for years - one in 2019 resulted in the death of an infant.
Springhill Medical Center in Alabama fell victim to a malicious ransomware attack that crippled the hospital’s internal network systems and public-facing web page.
Teiranni Kidd reported in a lawsuit filed against the Alabama medical center that she didn't know there was an ongoing ransomware attack when she arrived at the hospital to deliver her baby.
She was also unaware that computers on each floor had been disabled for the previous eight days because of the attack.
The computers are necessary to provide essential information about the baby's heart rate during delivery, but without the technology, the staff didn't know the umbilical cord was wrapped around Kidd's daughter's neck.
Nicko Silar was born with the cord still wrapped around her neck, cutting off her blood and oxygen supply and causing severe brain damage.
NIcko died nine months later.
Kidd reportedly reached an undisclosed settlement with Springhill Medical Center in April of this year, but her attorneys claim the hospital is now refusing to pay, Fox10 reported.
In February, Change Healthcare - a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group - experienced a major cyberattack that disrupted insurance co-pay systems, effectively denying people access to essential drugs.
Donna Hamlet, 73, is a breast cancer patient who takes a medication called IBRANCE that costs $16,000 out of pocket, but when the cyberattack struck she was left fumbling to find a way to get a hold of the drug.
Without the drug, 'the cancer would fill up my body, and I guess I would die,' Hamlet told NBC News.
John Paul Miller was likewise affected when he tried to use his discount card to pick up insulin needed to treat his Type 2 diabetes and congestive heart failure at a pharmacy in South Dakota.
He was told that the card couldn't be processed and he would need to pay hundreds of dollars to cover the cost.
'When you are diabetic, whether it's Type 1 or Type 2, without insulin they're going to die,' his wife, Ronda Miller told the outlet.
In another attack, Ascension, a St. Louis-based nonprofit network that covers 140 hospitals across 19 states was impacted just last month when hackers disrupted the healthcare facilities' access to electronic records and phone systems that are used to order tests, procedures and medications.
The attack forced the impacted hospitals to divert ambulances to other locations while it tried to get its systems up and running.
In 2022, Jes Kraus was denied radiation indefinitely when he showed up to his appointment the University of Vermont Medical Center.
He had been going to the center daily for aggressive radiation and chemotherapy to treat his stage three colorectal cancer, which he'd been fighting for three years.
'Radiation was canceled for a week,' Kara Kraus, Jes's wife, told ABC News at the time.
'We were afraid. We weren't sure if that would affect the outcome. Again, the tumor, would it start growing back within that week? What was going to happen?' she said.
Although cyberattacks are increasing, affecting more people in the US and around the world, the issue has been ongoing for years.
Donna Hamlet, 73, is a breast cancer patient who takes a medication that costs $16,000 out of pocket, but when the cyberattack struck she was left fumbling to find a way to get a hold of the drug
The healthcare and public health sectors were the most targeted by cybercriminals last year with one institution paying out a record-breaking $22 million ransom
Major payouts incentivize hackers to issue more attacks against health insurance companies and hospitals because they'll see it as a lucrative opportunity.
'These cyberattacks on our hospital infrastructures here and abroad only highlight the very urgent need for improved cybersecurity in healthcare overall,' said McKeon, cybersecurity expert and founder of MacguyverTech.
'With 1 in 3 Americans impacted by data breaches, modernizing these systems and enhancing cybersecurity measures are essential in protecting patient data and ensuring safety and continuity of care,' he said.
A Washington, DC-based law firm told Newsweek that the number of people filing lawsuits for health care data breaches has 'exploded' over the last five years and as of June 7, the firm had more than 100 pending class action lawsuits.
Cyberattacks have previously been associated with threats to patient's privacy and medical information, but the more concerning issue is the potential harm to patients, Josh Corman, a leading expert on cybersecurity and health care told ABC.
A cyberattack can cripple any of their systems which can render medication access useless,' McKeon told DailyMail.com.
'It can prevent anyone from accessing systems or using it to look up medication information.'
The FBI reported that healthcare and public health sectors suffered a total of 249 cyberattacks last year and McKeon said the solution is to fix outdated technology and 'enhance cybersecurity measures' that 'are essential in protecting patient data and ensuring safety and continuity of care.'