Читать книгу Do No Harm - Matthew Webster - Страница 9

If we step back and look at the big picture related to insecure internet-connected medical devices, the concerns are primarily around risks to healthcare organizations and risk to data. Fortunately, there have been very few deaths related to these insecure devices, but as adoption of internet-connected medical devices continues to rise, so will the associated risks. If COVID-19 has taught us one thing, it is that tragedy for some is an opportunity for others. From a cybersecurity perspective, it is important to understand who these actors are, what they are motivated by, and how can we stop, or at least reduce, the number and/or effectiveness of these attacks.

Before we can do this, it is extremely helpful to understand why poor security on internet-connected medical devices is such a challenge for IT and cybersecurity practitioners and why the devices have so many challenges to begin with. Looking at poor security as an origin story provides us with the context for understanding how to proceed. The world of IT, and especially internet-connected medical devices, is filled with a complex interrelation of social, technological, and economic challenges. It is important to understand this complex relationship if we are to devise a strategy for best protecting the devices, our hospitals, and the associated data.

As you read this first part of this book, keep the bigger picture in your head in order to more fully understand how we ended up where we are today. We have legal requirements that are not always followed by manufacturers, which creates both challenges and victories for protecting our healthcare, our data, and occasionally our lives.