ORCID

0000-0001-5881-5059

College

School of Cybersecurity

Department

Cybersecurity

Graduate Level

Master’s

Publication Date

4-2022

DOI

10.25883/wr54-n835

Abstract

I begin by looking at the role of cybersecurity in the medical world. The healthcare industry adopted information technology quite quickly. While the advancement was obviously beneficial and necessary to keep up with an ever-growing demand, the healthcare industry did not place any kind of pointed focus on the security of their IT department, or the sensitive information housed therein.

When rapid advancements of technology outpaced the gradual advancement of hospital cybersecurity, security concerns became a difficult issue to control. There is a serious need for more advancements in hospital security. Each interconnected medical device has its own unique security risks; there is not a one size fits all approach to medical device cybersecurity. Each device presents its own risk in its own form of disruption: hacking, malware infection, and vulnerabilities by way of unauthorized access.

The interconnectivity of medical devices becomes increasingly problematic with the scope of attacks on the public health sector. Confidential data is worth a lot of money and due to outdated technology, budget limitations, and resistance to change all contribute to the target on healthcare networks. Medical professionals are not trained to deal with networking and online threats. Manufacturers should be providing some sort of security on their devices, releasing patches, and ensuring secure products. While medical staff have little to do with the security of their devices, the owner of the healthcare facility can maintain (buy) strong device security and hiring capable cybersecurity team.

Keywords

Cybersecurity, Medical devices, Connectivity, Healthcare, Technology

Disciplines

Information Security

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Medical Devices and Cybersecurity


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