Government needs to help rural hospitals battle ransomware, IT security experts say

Fortified Health Security featured in Becker's Health IT.
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Rural hospitals need more government funding to deal with the increase in healthcare ransomware attacks and to hire more cybersecurity professionals, IT security leaders told Congress, CyberScoop reported March 16.

“We … saw cybercriminals shift their focus to small and rural hospitals with this group lagging behind in strengthening their defenses,” Kate Pierce, senior virtual information security officer at cyber company Fortified Health Security, told the Senate committee March 16, according to the story. “Our rural hospitals are facing unprecedented budget constraints with up to 30 percent or more in the red, with the public health emergency scheduled to end in May.”

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