Cybersecurity in healthcare protects patient data, maintains care continuity, and preserves trust across hospitals and health systems. In 2025 and beyond, it’s no longer just an IT concern but has become imperative for patient safety.
This guide covers all you need to know about cybersecurity in healthcare, including the major threats facing hospitals and clinics today, key frameworks like NIST CSF and HIPAA, and best practices for prevention, detection, and response. We’ll also highlight how solutions like SentinelOne help healthcare providers strengthen security, minimize downtime, and protect patient trust.
What is Cybersecurity in Healthcare?
Cybersecurity in healthcare protects hospital systems, medical devices, and patient data from cyber threats. It covers core digital tools such as electronic health records and telehealth platforms, along with connected equipment used for diagnosis or monitoring.
These systems store highly sensitive information, including medical histories and personal identifiers, which makes them attractive targets for attackers.
Effective cybersecurity helps healthcare organizations prevent data breaches, maintain the availability of critical services, and protect patient safety.
With more connected devices and cloud-based systems in use, healthcare cybersecurity focuses on identifying risks, securing access, and detecting threats early. Strong cybersecurity is a crucial component of delivering safe and reliable patient care.
Why Cybersecurity Is Essential to Patient Safety
In February 2024, a major cyberattack on Change Healthcare crippled much of the US healthcare system. This subsidiary of UnitedHealth and a key data processor for medical claims, eligibility checks, prescribing systems, and payment workflows, was struck by the ALPHV / BlackCat ransomware group.
The attack began in mid-February. Hackers exploited weak remote access controls to gain entry, operated within the network for days, and then unleashed encryption across critical systems.
A survey of the almost 1,000 hospitals that were affected found that:
- Over 70% reported direct impact on patient care, including delays in authorizations and treatments.
- 94% reported financial damage,
- 33% indicated that more than half of their revenue was disrupted.
- 60% needed two weeks to three months to resume regular operations.
The breach exposed data of nearly 190 million individuals, making it among the largest health data compromises ever disclosed. UnitedHealth paid approximately USD 22 million in ransom.
The cybersecurity breach highlighted how one compromised link in healthcare infrastructure can trigger widespread paralysis. When a core system fails, hospitals cannot bill for services, pharmacies face prescription delays, and patients lose access to timely care.
This event reinforced the need for cybersecurity in healthcare to be embedded into every operational level, from governance and clinical workflows to vendor relationships and data exchanges. Protecting digital systems is now directly tied to protecting patient safety, trust, and continuity of care.
Understanding the Healthcare Cyber Threat Landscape
Here are a few key trends shaping healthcare cybersecurity in 2025, based on insights from Forrester, CISA, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Health Sector Cybersecurity Coordination Center (HC3).
- Ransomware remains the top operational threat. Attackers are deploying faster, automated campaigns that encrypt systems and disrupt patient care. Health-ISAC and CISA both warn that ransomware actors are targeting various infrastructure to extort healthcare providers.
- Supply chain and third-party risk are rising. Attacks on vendors, billing services, and software suppliers can affect multiple healthcare organizations simultaneously. This is challenging, especially in cases where third-party platforms are deeply embedded in daily operations.
- Threat actors are more varied and persistent. Financially motivated groups, data extortion gangs, and nation-state actors are all active in the sector. These groups often steal patient data or disrupt services to gain leverage during ransom negotiations.
- Exploited vulnerabilities and exposed remote access services are common entry vectors. CISA’s #StopRansomware Guide points to unpatched software, outdated VPNs, and misconfigured cloud environments as common attack vectors. Basic security practices such as strong authentication and rapid patching remain vital.
- Telehealth and remote clinical tools increase risk and regulatory scrutiny. With more patients receiving care from home, unsecured endpoints and personal devices have become high-risk access points. HC3 and HHS reports recommend stronger security controls for telehealth platforms and patient monitoring tools.
- Rising focus on resilience and operational continuity. Health systems are investing more in continuity planning and incident response. Tabletop exercises, offline workflows, and tested recovery strategies are being adopted to limit downtime during attacks.
- Policy and regulation will tighten. Forrester predicts tighter federal and state-level requirements around baseline security controls, reporting obligations, and vendor oversight. These policies are expected to influence healthcare cybersecurity budgets in 2025.
Expanded digital infrastructure, medical IoT devices, and remote care have connected healthcare systems more than ever before, but they have also widened the attack surface considerably.
Medical IoT devices frequently run outdated software, making them attractive targets for attackers seeking network access. Cloud platforms and remote care tools create additional pathways into hospital systems.
Protecting patient safety now requires managing cybersecurity risks across every layer of the connected healthcare ecosystem.
Why Healthcare Is Targeted More Than Other Sectors
Healthcare is one of the most valuable targets for cyber attackers because it holds highly sensitive personal data.
Medical records include diagnostic history, treatment details, insurance information, unique identifiers like Social Security or national ID numbers, and sometimes genetic or biometric data. A breach in this sector can cause lasting harm beyond financial loss, such as identity theft, discrimination, and long-term privacy violations.
Research shows that healthcare organizations store far more sensitive data than most other industries. According to Rubrik Zero Labs, a typical healthcare provider now holds over 42 million sensitive data records, a number that continues to grow each year. Every ransomware attack puts massive volumes of this information at risk of exposure.
Attackers also target healthcare because of its operational urgency. Patient care, imaging systems, prescription services, and emergency operations rely on constant system availability, and even a short disruption can put lives at risk.
This creates strong pressure for providers to restore systems quickly, which gives attackers more leverage during incidents. In Q2 2025 alone, there were 52 publicly disclosed ransomware attacks on healthcare organizations, making it one of the hardest-hit sectors.
Beyond the data and operational challenges, healthcare breaches are also among the most expensive. Costs include technical recovery, regulatory fines, patient notifications, and reputational damage. The IBM–Ponemon Cost of a Data Breach Report 2025 estimates the average cost of a healthcare data breach at around USD 4.4 million.
Cyber Threats to Medical Devices and Communication Technology
Hospitals now depend on digitally connected systems for nearly every clinical and administrative process. Imaging equipment, infusion pumps, and patient monitoring tools are all part of larger hospital networks, which improves efficiency but increases cybersecurity exposure.
Many medical devices were designed primarily for functionality rather than security, often running outdated operating systems or lacking encryption capabilities. When compromised, these devices can provide attackers with pathways to access sensitive data or disrupt care delivery.
Outdated or poorly secured devices can leak patient data, which is highly sought after on criminal markets. A single system failure can interrupt diagnostics, monitoring, or treatment workflows.
Data sharing between hospital systems also introduces risk, as interoperability standards such as HL7 and FHIR require proper configuration and maintenance to avoid breaches during transmission.
The rapid growth of telehealth and remote diagnostics after the COVID-19 pandemic has further expanded this threat landscape. Remote sessions often occur over home networks and personal devices that lack strong protection. Weak authentication or unencrypted connections can allow attackers to intercept medical information or compromise communication platforms.
As digital care continues to expand, securing medical devices and communication channels has become critical to patient safety and healthcare resilience.
Top Cybersecurity Risks in Healthcare
The most active threats in healthcare today include ransomware, phishing, insider misuse, third-party compromise, and supply chain attacks.
- Ransomware remains the most severe threat to healthcare. The Health-ISAC 2025 report tracked 458 ransomware events in 2024. Recovery can take weeks, leading to canceled procedures, patient diversions, and major financial losses.
- Phishing continues to be the main entry point for attackers, with various breaches starting with a phishing email. Many campaigns now use AI to craft realistic messages that trick employees into sharing credentials or installing malware.
- Insider threats, whether intentional or accidental, pose a major problem. Employees with legitimate access to records sometimes misuse data or handle it carelessly. IBM reports that malicious insider attacks resulted in losses of up to USD 4.92 million.
- Third-party compromise: Hospitals depend on vendors for billing, software, and diagnostic tools. A single vendor breach can impact multiple healthcare organizations. The Change Healthcare ransomware event showed how third-party failures can disrupt claims processing and delay payments and other operations across the sector.
- Supply chain attacks target software and device suppliers before products reach hospitals. Malicious code or vulnerabilities can spread widely through trusted systems. IBM reported that supply chain compromise became the second most used attack vector in 2025 and the second costliest at USD 4.91 million.
Evolving Threats and Attack Models
Attackers are leveraging AI and automation to make their tactics more sophisticated.
AI-generated phishing messages closely mimic authentic communications from healthcare leaders or trusted vendors, substantially increasing success rates. Large language models also help cybercriminals create malicious code more rapidly and plan complex, multi-step attacks.
Cryptojacking has become more common, where attackers secretly use hospital servers or medical equipment to mine cryptocurrency. Hybrid attacks that target both IT systems and operational technology (OT), such as connected medical devices and facility control systems, are also on the rise.
A survey on LLM and GenAI security predicts that by 2025, LLM-assisted malware could account for as much as 50% of new malware development. These AI security risks highlight the growing need for continuous monitoring, better threat intelligence sharing, and stronger network segmentation.
Human Factors in Cybersecurity
Human error remains the leading cause of security incidents in healthcare. Misconfigurations, weak passwords, and mishandled data expose systems to attack. Heavy workloads and staff turnover make consistent training difficult, creating significant security gaps.
Reducing human-related risk requires ongoing education and testing. Regular phishing simulations, password training, and response exercises help staff recognize and react to threats faster. Role-based access controls and activity logs improve accountability and reduce accidental misuse.
A security-focused culture supported by leadership and continuous learning can significantly lower incident rates.
Core Challenges to Achieving Healthcare Cyber Resilience
Many healthcare organizations are struggling to strengthen their cybersecurity posture due to systemic and structural barriers.
Limited budgets, aging technology, and complex regulatory mandates make it difficult to keep pace with fast-evolving threats. These issues directly affect security maturity, recovery speed, and patient safety outcomes.
Resource Constraints and Compliance Pressures
Maintaining compliance with data security frameworks such as HIPAA, GDPR, and the HHS Cybersecurity Performance Goals (CPGs) places heavy demands on healthcare budgets and operations. Many hospitals operate with thin margins, making it difficult to fund dedicated security staff, modern infrastructure, or 24/7 monitoring.
Regulatory audits and incident reporting requirements also add to the workload, especially for smaller providers. As a result, organizations often meet the minimum standards for compliance but fall short in proactive risk management.
A practical approach is to prioritize controls based on criticality and exposure. Frameworks like NIST CSF or HHS’s CPGs can help hospitals focus limited resources on actions that deliver the most impact, such as network segmentation, identity management, and data encryption.
Remote Work and Endpoint Security
The rise of telehealth and hybrid work environments has created new challenges for endpoint security. Physicians, administrative staff, and remote care teams now access sensitive systems from various locations and devices. Each connection increases the potential for intrusion if it’s not properly monitored or protected.
To address this, hospitals are implementing zero-trust access models that verify every connection before granting access. Device monitoring, multi-factor authentication, and continuous network segmentation help isolate potential threats before they spread.
As healthcare delivery becomes more distributed, these controls are vital to protecting both clinical and administrative operations.
Lack of Unified Incident Response and Business Continuity
In many healthcare systems, incident response is still fragmented between IT, clinical, and executive teams. This lack of coordination delays containment and recovery when attacks occur. Disconnected response plans can also cause confusion during critical moments, affecting both data recovery and patient care continuity.
Integrated response frameworks, such as those outlined by NIST and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, promote cross-department collaboration.
A unified playbook that defines roles, communication channels, and escalation steps helps organizations respond faster and limit downtime. Regular exercises and post-incident reviews further strengthen preparedness and resilience.
Frameworks and Best Practices for Healthcare Cybersecurity
Healthcare organizations are adopting structured cybersecurity frameworks to strengthen defense, detection, and recovery.
Frameworks such as Zero Trust, MITRE ATT&CK, and the NIST CSF provide a roadmap for reducing exposure and improving resilience. When applied effectively, they help hospitals protect patient data, detect threats early, and maintain business continuity even during incidents.
Implementing Zero Trust Architecture
Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) operates on the principle that no user, device, or system should be trusted by default. In healthcare, this model is especially important because of the high number of connected systems and third-party integrations.
Here’s a practical approach to implementing ZTA:
- Identify all assets and users: Create an accurate inventory of users, endpoints, and medical devices connected to the network.
- Verify identities continuously: Use strong authentication methods such as multi-factor authentication for both staff and vendors.
- Segment access: Restrict access based on job roles and isolate critical systems from general IT networks.
- Monitor and analyze activity: Use behavioral analytics to detect unusual actions or unauthorized access attempts.
- Automate responses: Implement systems that can quarantine compromised devices or block suspicious traffic automatically.
Applying MITRE ATT&CK and NIST Cybersecurity Frameworks
The MITRE ATT&CK framework helps security teams understand how adversaries operate by mapping known attack techniques across every phase of an intrusion. Healthcare organizations can use this model to identify gaps in visibility, test defenses, and align detection strategies with real-world attack behaviors.
NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) complements MITRE ATT&CK by organizing cybersecurity activities into five key functions: Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover.
- Identify: Know which systems and data are most critical to operations.
- Protect: Apply preventive controls such as encryption and access management.
- Detect: Use real-time monitoring to spot anomalies and potential intrusions.
- Respond: Contain and communicate during incidents to minimize disruption.
- Recover: Restore systems and learn from events to strengthen resilience.
SentinelOne’s results in the MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise 2025 evaluation highlight the value of automation and analytics.
The platform achieved 100% detection coverage across 143 attack steps, with zero missed detections and real-time visibility across the attack chain. Its autonomous response capabilities can reduce Mean Time to Respond (MTTR) by up to 90%, demonstrating measurable improvements in accuracy and operational efficiency.
Building a Strong Cyber Hygiene Program
Strong cyber hygiene practices form the foundation of any security strategy. Regular patching, least privilege policies, and secure data backups reduce the impact of many common attacks. Outdated systems and weak access controls remain leading causes of breaches in healthcare.
CISA’s Mitigation Guide for the Healthcare and Public Health (HPH) Sector recommends several key actions:
- Apply security patches as soon as they are available.
- Limit administrative privileges to essential staff only.
- Maintain offline and encrypted backups of critical systems.
- Test restoration procedures regularly to confirm data recovery works effectively.
Developing a Resilient Cybersecurity Culture
Technology alone cannot protect healthcare organizations without a strong security culture. Building resilience requires collaboration between leadership, clinical staff, and IT teams.
- Leadership buy-in: Executives must treat cybersecurity as a core business function and allocate appropriate resources.
- Employee training: Regular awareness programs and simulated phishing tests help staff recognize threats.
- Accountability: Define clear roles for security ownership across departments.
- Communication: Encourage open reporting of incidents or suspicious behavior without fear of blame.
- Testing and measurement: Track engagement, response times, and training completion rates to measure improvement.
Embedding these practices into daily operations helps organizations stay prepared and aligned with long-term security goals.
Leveraging AI and Automation in Threat Detection and Response
AI and machine learning are significantly helping healthcare organizations to detect and respond to cyber threats.
These technologies analyze large amounts of network and device data to identify unusual behavior that might signal an attack. Predictive analytics helps detect risks earlier, allowing faster intervention before disruptions occur.
Machine learning models continue to evolve with new threat patterns, improving accuracy over time. They can recognize subtle anomalies that traditional systems might miss, which is critical for protecting sensitive patient information and connected medical devices.
Automation complements these capabilities by handling repetitive security tasks. It can isolate affected systems, block malicious activity, and trigger recovery actions instantly. This speeds up response times and reduces operational impact, helping hospitals maintain continuous care delivery even during incidents.
Collaboration, Intelligence Sharing & Compliance
Cybersecurity in healthcare depends on collaboration and shared intelligence.
Working with agencies such as CISA, HC3, H-ISAC, and the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC) helps healthcare providers stay ahead of emerging threats. These partnerships allow organizations to access real-time alerts, threat reports, and mitigation strategies tailored to the healthcare sector.
Proactive compliance with regulatory standards builds trust with patients and partners while strengthening overall risk management.
Incident Reporting and Regulatory Obligations
Breach reporting under frameworks such as HIPAA and GDPR requires timely disclosure and clear communication.
Transparent reporting helps reduce financial and legal penalties while preserving stakeholder confidence. Strong incident documentation also improves the accuracy of root cause analysis, allowing faster recovery and better prevention of future incidents.
Public-Private Partnerships and Collective Defense
Public-private collaboration is vital for building a stronger defense across the healthcare ecosystem. Working with government bodies, cybersecurity alliances, and private threat intelligence platforms shortens response times, improves situational awareness, and helps organizations adapt to evolving attack methods more effectively.
Cybersecurity Trends in Healthcare
The healthcare sector is undergoing rapid change as digital transformation accelerates. Below are key trends shaping healthcare cybersecurity in 2026.
Growing Threat Landscape in Healthcare
According to the Health-ISAC 2025 Annual Threat Report, ransomware deployments remain the top cybersecurity concern across the healthcare sector, followed closely by third-party and data breaches.
Security teams are also increasingly focused on supply chain attacks and zero-day exploits as healthcare organizations expand their reliance on cloud vendors and interconnected systems.
Security Challenges for Medical Device Manufacturers
Medical devices continue to face complex security challenges. According to a 2025 study, 22% of surveyed healthcare organizations experienced a medical device cyberattack.
The top issues include integrating cybersecurity early in product design, maintaining regular and secure updates, and ensuring long-term protection throughout a device’s operational life.
As medical devices become more connected, manufacturers must address these challenges to reduce the risk of exploitation through outdated or unpatched equipment.
Rising Cloud and AI-Related Risks
Cloud adoption and generative AI are redefining cybersecurity priorities across healthcare. According to the Netskope Threat Labs Report for Healthcare, 88% of healthcare organizations now use generative AI applications.
At the same time, 13% of healthcare organizations report monthly malware downloads through cloud applications such as GitHub.
These findings highlight the growing challenge of balancing innovation with data protection in increasingly cloud-driven and AI-integrated environments.
Increasing Cyber-Driven Care Disruptions
In 2025, 72% of healthcare organizations experienced patient care disruptions due to cyber incidents. These disruptions are often due to data theft, system outages, and hybrid attacks targeting both IT and operational networks.
Such incidents show how cybersecurity weaknesses can translate into real-world risks for hospitals and patients.
Future Outlook: The Next Phase of Healthcare Cybersecurity
Over the next three to five years, emerging technologies and shifting regulations will reshape how healthcare protects its systems and data. Blockchain, confidential computing, and AI governance are among the innovations likely to drive security maturity in the industry.
Blockchain
Blockchain technology may become more widely adopted as a method to protect data integrity and create audit trails across fragmented healthcare systems.
In trials, combining blockchain with AI has reduced unauthorized access attempts by over 94% while maintaining compliance with HIPAA and GDPR requirements. In medical device networks, blockchain architectures are being designed to create transparent, tamper-resistant records of firmware updates, access logs, and data sharing.
Confidential computing
Confidential computing is another promising direction. This technology supports data processing inside secure hardware environments, so that sensitive patient data remains encrypted even while in use.
In healthcare AI workloads, confidential computing can reduce exposure during algorithm training and model inference. As providers adopt more AI models that process protected health information (PHI), confidential computing could become a baseline safeguard for compliance and trust.
Shifts in regulations
Regulation and policy will also evolve. Governments in the U.S. are proposing more stringent cybersecurity rules for healthcare data breaches, including mandatory encryption and expanded reporting requirements.
At the same time, as AI tools grow more powerful, regulators are developing frameworks to govern the safe use of AI in clinical settings. These future mandates may require auditability, fairness controls, and algorithm transparency.
Conclusion: Building a Secure, Resilient, and Trustworthy Healthcare Ecosystem
A secure and resilient healthcare system requires proactive investment and continuous learning alongside advanced technology implementation.
Hospitals and health networks must build layered defenses, modernize legacy infrastructure, and promote security awareness across every department. Strong cybersecurity is now essential for long-term trust and operational continuity.
SentinelOne’s Singularity™ Platform helps healthcare organizations protect patient data and clinical workflows through AI-driven prevention, detection, and response across endpoints, cloud, and IoT environments.
It reduces dwell time and operational disruption with autonomous threat containment and real-time visibility. The platform also supports Zero Trust initiatives through continuous monitoring and identity-based access control, while helping organizations maintain compliance with HIPAA, GDPR, and HHS Cybersecurity Performance Goals.
FAQs
Hospitals continue facing ransomware attacks and phishing campaigns as primary threats in 2025, alongside data theft operations targeting valuable patient information. Attackers target electronic health records and connected medical devices, cloud systems, and third-party vendor platforms to steal or encrypt patient data for ransom payments.
Cyberattacks can delay medical procedures, disrupt access to patient records, and force hospitals to revert to manual operations. These disruptions increase the risk of treatment errors and can directly affect patient outcomes and safety.
Healthcare providers should align their programs with the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) for structured risk management, comply with the HIPAA Security Rule for patient data protection, and follow HICP (Health Industry Cybersecurity Practices) guidelines to address common threats and operational risks.
Hospitals should maintain secure, offline data backups, apply timely patches, and use endpoint protection tools that detect and block ransomware behavior. A well-tested incident response plan helps teams isolate infected systems and recover operations quickly with minimal data loss.
Hospitals should evaluate vendors through regular risk assessments, review security certifications, and require clear data protection terms in contracts. Continuously monitoring third-party access and data exchange helps reduce exposure from billing systems, EHR providers, and other external partners.
