Healthcare industry: A prime target of cyberattacks

In the U.S., healthcare is the second largest sector of the economy. It accounted for around 18 percent of the nation’s total GDP in 2017. Unfortunately, the sector size also makes it vulnerable to cyberattacks. As a matter of fact, the healthcare industry is twice as vulnerable to cyberattacks than any other sector.

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There are plenty of reasons hackers target healthcare, such as the following:


Highly valuable data: Healthcare organizations hold a great amount of patient data, which can include highly sensitive and private information, such as full names, social security numbers, addresses, contact details, birth information, and more. Hackers can sell such information on the black market or monetize it through blackmail. For example, in early 2018, a U.S. hospital had to pay $55,000 to cybercriminals after a ransomware attack.

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Ease of attacks: Nowadays, consumers prefer and sometimes even demand quick service and instant access to medical information, scheduling, and other services. Healthcare organizations have then invested in remote services, Internet-based consulting, cloud technologies, IT integration, Internet of Medical Things, and other similar technologies. These, unfortunately, can also provide additional opportunities for cybercriminals to attack, especially if insufficient resources are spent on cybersecurity. Compliance challenges are also commonplace in the healthcare industry, which may make it more difficult for organizations to include additional budget on cybersecurity.


Richard Blech is a resolute advocate of disruptive technology, holding vested interests in cyber-defense and digital content. Read more about these topics by checking out this blog.

Common cybersecurity mistakes made in enterprises

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Now that cybercriminals are targeting more and more enterprises, enterprises should be more aware of ongoing cybercriminal campaigns and fortify their defenses. More than ever, cyberattacks have been getting a lot of attention from the media because of attacks like WannaCry. However, there are still companies that are reluctant to change their security practices. Here are some of the common cybersecurity mistakes made by companies which cybercriminals capitalize on.

Weak passwords Weak passwords can easily be guessed or bypassed by special software. People generally use weak passwords because of ease of use. But the same ease of use goes both ways as vulnerable passwords make hacking that much easier. A strong password includes upper and lower case letters, numbers, and special symbols.

Bad email practices Cybercriminals often go after weak and possibly non-tech savvy employees when targeting large companies. And with email being the most common attack vector for most cyberattacks, having bad email practices can lead to a security breach. Bad email practices include downloading files and clicking on links from unknown senders.

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Outdated security tools A lot of companies rely on limited resources when it comes to cybersecurity. Instead of devoting resources for improved cybersecurity, they rely on built-in security systems which may not be the best option to fend off today’s threats.

Patching delays Microsoft as well as other operating systems release patches regularly to fix bugs in their software. However, some companies choose not to update their systems because of the downtime needed to update all their computers. This makes computers susceptible to attacks which abuse certain vulnerabilities.

Richard Blech is an entrepreneur, investor, and innovator. He is the Chief Executive Officer of Secure Channels, a security solutions company that provides innovative state-of-the-art designs that complement clients’ existing investment in security. For more reads about him and the company, visit this website.

Safety Measures: Learning From The Atlanta Ransomware Attack

The Atlanta ransomware attack that occurred in March 2018 has prompted discussions between IT professional and cybersecurity experts based in the U.S. and U.K. The agenda was how to detect and prevent future attacks.

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Upon further investigation, it was deemed that the IT group in Atlanta took weeks before updating their systems with patches provided by Microsoft. This just shows how important it is to follow basic safety measures. 

Here are some more reminders for the public to minimize the damage caused by ransomware.

• Backup all critical data regularly. Many ransomware hackers have no use for the data they encrypt, which means data backups render ransomware useless for hackers.
• As soon as they become available, install security patches for operating systems and any other devices, and install updates whenever you are notified. Patches and updates fortify any vulnerabilities in the system.
• Anti-virus and anti-malware programs should be installed on all devices and operating systems.
• Administrators should have contingencies in case hackers successfully deliver the ransomware. These contingency plans should allow the continued operation of government services while IT experts find a way to deal with the attack.
• Hacking tests should be conducted on government systems on a regular basis. This identifies holes in the system, which should either be patched up or removed entirely from data servers. 

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Richard Blech is the CEO of Secure Channels, a company conceiving solutions designed to be customizable to its clients’ environment without compromising the level of protection it provides and reducing maintenance costs. For more tips on cybersecurity, visit this blog.

A brief historical note on viruses

The term “virus” in the computing world has been inaccurately applied to a number of malware programs. Even if people have equated every malicious software to a virus and have misappropriated the word in a variety of situations, it is still important to clarify and identify correct contexts where programs can be considered viruses. 

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The system attacks of a computer virus may range from funny screen messages to acquisition of sensitive information. The main characteristic of a computer virus is its ability to reproduce and modify other software without the knowledge of the user. But unlike a worm, a virus needs the activation of the program or executable file to which it is attached. 

There was already considerable academic and theoretical work on self-replicating computer programs, decades before the first viruses ravaged systems all over the world. The Hungarian-American mathematician John von Neumann had lectured and published works in the 1940s and 1950s on the design and processes of program multiplication. 

Similar studies were produced within the academic circles of Europe and the US. Veith Risak and Jürgen Kraus wrote their own papers on the subject. The American computer scientist Fred Cohen did some of the most extensive research on the topic, finally coining and defining the computer virus and elaborating on its inherent characteristics of infection, modification, and reproduction. 

People didn’t care much about these malicious programs in the 1980s, basically considering them largely theoretical and with little or no consequence to real world operations. The introduction of the first virus in the wild, Elk Cloner, gave a clearer picture of the capabilities of these programs. 

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Richard Blech is an entrepreneur, investor, and innovator. He is also the CEO of Secure Channels, a company conceiving solutions designed to be customizable to its clients’ environment without compromising the level of protection it provides and reducing maintenance costs. To read similar articles, visit this blog.