Why Hospitals Leveraging Backup as a Service Solutions to Escape Ransomware Demands?

Hospitals have been identified as one of the prime targets for cyber-criminals and ransomware, according to DRaaS provider Comport Consulting Corporation.

The combination of a high need for compliance by regulatory agencies coupled with the need for uninterrupted service and above all, patient outcomes means that healthcare facilities are more likely than other targets to pay off a ransom swiftly to prevent interruption.

This, combined with the relatively low security in place at most healthcare facilities, has led to a rise in ransomware crime against hospitals, nursing homes and other providers. While all industries are seeing a rise in ransomware attacks, the healthcare industry has been particularly plagued.

Since ransomware locks a business out of their own infrastructure, everything from patient data to treatment plans and medication needs becomes unavailable, rendering treatment difficult or impossible.

Thankfully, there are ways to mitigate the risk of a ransomware attack on a facility; taking proactive steps, including using DRaaS for all networks, can help prevent losses in the first place. In the event that a ransomware attack is launched, DR as a Service can allow the hospital to get up and running again very quickly, with little risk to patients.

There is a trend in healthcare for the adoption of DR as a Service to help prevent interruptions and ensure that patient care can proceed uninterrupted.

Benefits of DRaaS for Healthcare Facilities 

• Enhanced Reliability: Most facilities have some form of backup plan, but DRaaS is reliable and automated; it creates regular backups on an ongoing basis, managed by a team of experts. This allows for the inclusion of the most up to date information; when you use DRaaS, there is a much lower risk of critical patient information being lost or misplaced. You can proceed with confidence knowing you have the most up to date information regarding patient care.
• Improved Security: With DRaaS, your team gets the physical and technological security you may not be able to afford otherwise. Housing your data in a tier 5 facility ensures that only the users who are authorized to work with your data and the DRaaS provider can see or alter data. This is particularly important for the healthcare industry, who face both HIPPA regulations as well as an increasing number of state compliance rules as well.
• Robust Coverage: While the impact of ransomware is immediate and far reaching, smaller disasters can interrupt service as well, BaaS coupled with DRaaS offers protection against low-level disasters and events like power loss, mechanical failure and operator error. This ensures that systems can resume operation immediately after an event of any kind, further protecting patients and outcomes.
• Practical, Easy to Use Coverage: BaaS combined with DRaaS minimizes the downtime that occurs when an adverse event happens. Systems are available and ready to be accessed in minutes, not days. This ensures that many departments, including those in charge of patient care and records, will not be impacted by an interruption of service or care.