56% of healthcare delivery organizations believe an attack on medical devices is imminent

Medical device technology has brought an improved sense of care to healthcare organizations, yet also bring along the risk of a data breach when not maintained. A new survey by Ponemon Institute, an information technology research organizations, found medical devices to be especially susceptible to attack.

Laptops, tablets, wearables and other medical devices have become a major part of healthcare delivery. This survey evaluates healthcare delivery organizations (HDOs) and device makers to outline their views on medical devices and the risks they face.

Findings include:

1. 67 percent of device makers and 56 percent of HDOs believe an attack on one or more of their medical devices is very likely or likely within the next year
2. 37 percent of device makers and 59 percent of HDOs are confident in their security measures to detect vulnerabilities.
3. 25 percent of device makers and 38 percent of HDOs have security protocols within their devices to protect patient data.
4. 40 percent of device makers and 44 percent of HDOs are unaware of what caused an adverse event with a medical device
5. 39 percent of device makers and 45 percent of HDOs have no steps in preventing attacks on medical devices.
6. 29 percent of device makers and 21 percent of HDOs believe the use of mobile devices has very significantly increased security risks.
7. 61 percent of device makers and 59 percent of HDOs report a serious hacking event would influence their organization to increase the security budget of medical devices.
8. 34 percent of device makers and 27 percent of HDOs report having medical devices that contain malware and significant vulnerabilities.