E-Business
IDC Identifies Cyber Threats, Successful Attacks Impacts on Healthcare Organizations

IDC Health Insights today announced a new report, “Business Strategy: Thwarting Cyber Threats and Attacks against Healthcare Organizations”.
The new report features findings from the 2014 IDC Insights Cross Industry Cyber Threat Survey, designed to gauge how financial services, healthcare provider organizations and retailers are responding to increasing cyber threats and the impact of successful attacks on business operations.
This IDC Health Insights study also highlights how healthcare organizations are investing in their cyber strategy to protect their most valuable electronic assets.
Today’s healthcare organizations are at greater risk of a cyber attack than ever before in part because electronic health information is more widely available today than in the nearly 20 years since the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act was passed in 1996.
Cyber criminals view healthcare organizations as a soft target compared to financial services and retailers because historically healthcare organizations have invested less in IT, including security technologies and services, than other industries, thus making them more vulnerable to successful cyber attacks.
The value of health information, which can be used to commit medical fraud, is surpassing the value of social security and credit card numbers on the black market, thus increasing the attractiveness of stealing health information.
Key findings include:
After physical loss or theft of a laptop, mobile or portable device, malicious hacking or IT incident was the most common breach reported on the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Web site.
In 2013, 20 (out of 175) breaches related to hacking or an IT incident represented 9% of the individuals affected and 11.4% of the attacks.
All respondents of the 2014 IDC Insights Cross Industry Cyber Threat Survey reported that they had experienced a cyber attack in the past 12 months; 39.4% reported that they were attacked more than 10 times and 27.1% of the attacks were described as “successful attacks.”
Security is a top IT initiative for health care providers. In 2014, according to the 2014 IDC Global Technology and Industry Research Organization IT Survey, security and risk management technologies was the number 1 initiative (29.0%).
In 2013, it was also the top ranked initiative (20.1%).
Approximately 1 out of 4 cyber attacks had an impact on normal business operations.
The majority of respondents (52.2%) indicated that the shortest impact lasted less than an hour and 43.3% reported that the longest duration was between 8 and 24 hours.
The overwhelming majority of healthcare executives reported that their spending on cyber threats increased (59.6%) or stayed the same (38.3%) over the last three years.
On average, the increase for those respondents that reported an increase was 14.8%.
Consumers highly value their privacy according to a recent 2014 IDC Insights Cross-Industry Consumer Experience Survey, but are not as confident that healthcare organizations were adequately protecting their data.
Concerned consumers are willing to end a healthcare relationship after a breach, including changing their care providers (21.6%) and changing health plans (5%).
According to Lynne A. Dunbrack, research vice president, IDC Health Insights, “For healthcare organizations, it’s not a matter of if they are going to be attacked but when. Healthcare cyber security strategies need to take a comprehensive approach and include not only react and defend capabilities, but also predict and prevent capabilities to effectively thwart cybercriminals.”
Cyber attacks against healthcare will assuredly increase in number and level of sophistication in the next 12 to 24 months.
As other industries become more proficient at thwarting cyber attacks, cyber criminals will continue to cast their nets wider to find vulnerable information assets to exploit.
IDC Health Insights expects over time that spending allocations will change to support predict and prevent security strategies rather than defend and remediate strategies.
According to the new report, to take a more proactive stance in protecting themselves against cyber threats and attacks, healthcare organizations will need to invest in threat intelligence reporting which combines reports from security vendors and the organization’s own network logs. Predictive analytics can then be applied against these external and internal data feeds to help identify behaviors that suggest that systems are being compromised and under attack.
E-Business
Microsoft Server Hack Likely Solo Actor, Thousands at Risk

A widespread cyberattack targeting Microsoft’s (MSFT.O) server software used by thousands of government agencies and businesses for internal document sharing was likely orchestrated by a single actor, a cybersecurity researcher said on Monday.
Microsoft issued an alert on Saturday warning of “active attacks” on on-premise SharePoint servers.
The company clarified that SharePoint Online, part of the Microsoft 365 cloud suite, was not affected by the exploit, which is considered a “zero-day” vulnerability due to its previously undiscovered nature.
“Based on the consistency of the tradecraft seen across observed attacks, the campaign launched on Friday appears to be a single actor. However, it’s possible that this will quickly change,” Rafe Pilling, director of Threat Intelligence at Sophos, a British cybersecurity firm.
That tradecraft included the sending of the same digital payload to multiple targets, Pilling added.
Microsoft said it had “provided security updates and encourages customers to install them,” a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
It was not clear who was behind the ongoing hack. The FBI said on Sunday it was aware of the attacks and was working closely with its federal and private-sector partners, but offered no other details.
Britain’s National Cyber Security Centre did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Washington Post said unidentified actors in the past few days had exploited a flaw to launch an attack that targeted U.S. and international agencies and businesses.
According to data from Shodan, a search engine that helps to identify internet-linked equipment, over 8,000 servers online could theoretically have already been compromised by hackers.
Those servers include major industrial firms, banks, auditors, healthcare companies, and several U.S. state-level and international government entities.
“The SharePoint incident appears to have created a broad level of compromise across a range of servers globally,” said Daniel Card of British cybersecurity consultancy, PwnDefend.
“Taking an assumed breach approach is wise, and it’s also important to understand that just applying the patch isn’t all that is required here.”
E-Business
Flaw in Microsoft SharePoint Sparks Global Cybersecurity Concern

A Microsoft SharePoint server software flaw is causing widespread concern across the global cybersecurity landscape, exposing thousands of organisations to hackers exploiting a new vulnerability.
This critical vulnerability exposes government agencies, universities, and energy firms who are at risk of cyberattacks. The flaw, now being actively exploited by unidentified hackers, allows attackers to gain deep, remote access to on-premise SharePoint servers.
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has confirmed that the vulnerability can enable malicious actors to access internal files, change configurations, and even execute remote code, effectively giving them high-level control over compromised systems.
Microsoft has also acknowledged the breach and released a security patch aimed at stopping the ongoing attacks. The firm urged users to apply the patch immediately, saying it is working to roll out additional protections, according to a statement reported by Bloomberg.
Despite these efforts, cybersecurity researchers warn that systems may remain vulnerable if attackers have already infiltrated networks, stolen authentication keys, or implanted persistent backdoors before patches were applied.
The United States hosts the highest number of these vulnerable systems, followed by the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
The Washington Post reported that the breach has already impacted a range of institutions, including U.S. federal and state agencies, academic institutions, energy companies, and a telecommunications firm in Asia.
This latest incident adds to a growing list of cybersecurity challenges facing Microsoft. In March, the company revealed that Chinese state-backed hackers had targeted its cloud-based services to infiltrate both U.S. and international organisations.
Last year, the U.S. Cyber Safety Review Board sharply criticised Microsoft’s internal security culture as ‘inadequate’ after a separate breach compromised its Exchange Online mail systems and exposed communications of high-level officials.
E-Business
NIMC Enrolls 122m for NIN, Cuts Extortion by 40 Percent

National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has said that it has reduced incidents of extortion and unofficial charges in the identity enrolment process by over 40 per cent.

Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director general of NIMC,
Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director general of NIMC, who disclosed this at an event in Lagos at the weekend, attributed the drop to improved transparency in fee structure at the commission.
The CEO was represented by Lanre Yusuf, director, Information Technology and Identity Database, NINC.
The workshop, organised by the identity regulator in partnership with the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers, focused on repositioning Nigeria’s digital identity landscape and combating misinformation.
According to Coker-Odusote, the sharp reduction in illicit charges is a direct result of reforms introduced by NIMC to curb racketeering and unauthorised payments, which have for years plagued the national identity registration process..
“Enrolment for the National Identification Number remains free. We have standardised modification and authentication fees, and these are publicly disclosed. Our enforcement of a transparent fee structure has resulted in a 40 per cent drop in extortion and unofficial charges,” the regulator said.
She explained that prior to her assumption of office, complaints about exploitative fees at enrolment centres were widespread, fuelling public distrust in the system.
However, she noted that the commission had since prioritised transparency and stakeholder accountability, ensuring that Nigerians no longer have to pay above the legally mandated fees. “We are addressing deep-rooted issues that once undermined public confidence in the enrolment process,” she said.
The NIMC chief added that the commission had introduced digital tools to reduce human interference in the registration process.
These include the NINAuth mobile app, the Self-Service NIN Enrolment and Modification app, and Contactless Biometric Solutions, all designed to make the system more efficient, secure, and user-friendly.
Coker-Odusote also reiterated the commission’s commitment to inclusion, stressing that no Nigerian should be left behind in the country’s digital identity transformation.
According to her, over 7,167 front-end enrolment agents and partners have been revalidated and retrained to serve the public professionally, with strict monitoring mechanisms now in place.
In addition, NIMC has deployed grievance redress officers across all 36 states to handle complaints from Nigerians about enrolment centres and agents, with a 24/7 toll-free line available to report any misconduct.
The reforms are part of broader efforts by the Commission to build a unified, secure, and people-centred digital identity system that facilitates access to government services, financial inclusion, social protection, and national planning.
Coker-Odusote called on media partners to support the Commission in disseminating accurate information, countering misinformation, and raising awareness about the benefits of digital identity.
“We are asking our partners in the media to help us combat fake news and promote transparency in the identity ecosystem. We need to ensure every Nigerian understands their rights and knows that their identity is key to accessing opportunities and services,” she said.
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