Last year was an especially stressful time for healthcare systems. Not only were emergency rooms overwhelmed by patients, a number of them were also hit by system-crippling cyberattacks. According to Comparitech, in 2020 alone, 92 ransomware attacks affected over 600 healthcare organizations, exposing more than 18 million patient records. These attacks brought operations to a standstill for days or weeks at a time, costing the healthcare industry an estimated $20.8 billion.

Thanks to the growing availability of vaccines and immunization campaigns in multiple countries, the world is starting to see a light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel. We are eager to return to a new normal, being aware that some changes will be permanent, or if not permanent will strongly characterize the next years.

Without a doubt, digital transformation accelerated amid the pandemic and made it possible for employees to work remotely. However, it also intensified the threat landscape created by malicious attackers who jumped on the first opportunity to attack the more vulnerable home networks. As remote working becomes the new norm, it is paramount to have an agile infrastructure and team for security. Companies need to manage and orchestrate appropriate remediation activities carefully.