Cybersecurity Risks in Healthcare: The Hardware Level

Understanding Cybersecurity Risks in Healthcare

The healthcare industry is one of the most vital parts of any nation’s critical infrastructure, providing everything from routine care to life-saving treatments. However, Cybersecurity Risks in Healthcare continue to grow as hackers increasingly view the sector as a high-value target. Healthcare delivery organizations (HDOs) hold massive amounts of sensitive data, rely on constant uptime, and have limited tolerance for disruption, making them uniquely vulnerable to cyberattacks and emerging threats.

Cybersecurity Risks in Healthcare go far beyond data theft. Weak security postures, budgetary constraints, and competing operational priorities often leave hospitals and providers unprepared to face sophisticated cyber threats. For many organizations, the main challenge lies in balancing security with patient care, as additional protocols can feel disruptive to operations. Yet, with the industry’s deep reliance on technology, these risks have a direct impact on both safety and quality of care.

While many healthcare entities focus on software-based protections, they often overlook a critical blind spot: Layer one, the physical layer of the network. Here, rogue or compromised hardware can bypass even the most robust defenses, introducing invisible threats and vulnerabilities. Without visibility into these hardware-related risks, healthcare institutions expose patients, staff, and critical services to cascading consequences.

This article explores the key Cybersecurity Risks in Healthcare, examining the actors, attack methods, outcomes, and vulnerabilities that continue to endanger the industry, and why gaining visibility into hardware assets is essential for protecting patient safety and national security.

Threat Actors and Their Motives

Understanding who targets healthcare and why is essential for addressing cybersecurity risks in healthcare. Threat actors range from state-sponsored groups seeking strategic advantage to cybercriminals motivated by financial gain. Each actor introduces unique risks that can compromise patient safety, operational continuity, and sensitive healthcare data.

• State-sponsored actors target healthcare delivery organizations to steal intellectual property, gain insights into national healthcare policies, or disrupt operations. These attacks can endanger patient safety, compromise critical infrastructure, and threaten national security.
• Terrorists aim to cause psychological and physical harm by disrupting healthcare services. Attacks on hospitals and clinics can ripple through society, potentially causing fatalities and widespread fear.
• Cybercriminals prioritize financial gain, taking advantage of healthcare’s low tolerance for downtime. Ransomware and data theft, including sensitive patient information and intellectual property, underscore the tangible cybersecurity risks in healthcare, threatening both trust and operational continuity.
• Hacktivists launch attacks to make political or social statements. Healthcare delivery organizations often become pawns in these broader campaigns, increasing cybersecurity risks and causing operational disruptions.

Common Cyberattacks and Their Consequences

Due to the nature of the industry, cyberattacks targeting healthcare are more costly than the global average. Remediation efforts and downtime have a substantial financial effect as healthcare delivery organizations run in time-sensitive environments. These factors highlight the significant cybersecurity risks in healthcare that providers must manage.

However, cyberattacks also carry significant indirect costs. Healthcare institutions face some of the highest regulatory compliance fines globally, often reaching seven figures, if their infrastructure is not properly secured. Additionally, reputational damage can result in a loss of business following a cyberattack.

According to research by Morphisec, 27% of patients would switch healthcare providers if their current provider experienced a cyberattack. Efforts to repair the organization’s reputation, if even possible, represent an additional financial burden. In healthcare, these threats extend beyond monetary loss, affecting patient trust, safety, and national stability, highlighting the critical cybersecurity risks faced by the sector.

Major Cybersecurity Threats to Healthcare Organizations

• Ransomware remains a prevalent threat to healthcare organizations. The HHS 405(d) Post, Volume XV, notes that: “Damage from ransomware is growing fast as more and more attacks successfully target medical infrastructure.” These attacks not only disrupt operations but can also disable life-saving equipment, compromise patient care, and even increase mortality, illustrating that cybersecurity risks in healthcare extend beyond digital loss to physical harm.
• Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks disrupt operations and may cover up other attacks. While less frequent, they can significantly impact patient services, especially when initiated by hacktivists.
• Data breaches target sensitive patient information and intellectual property. Because healthcare organizations maintain massive databases of PII and PHI, they are particularly attractive to hackers. Consequently, breach costs average $10 million, well above the global average, underscoring the significant financial and operational impact of cybersecurity risks in healthcare.
• Intellectual property theft is another key threat. Research, drug formulas, and proprietary technologies are highly sought after by both state-sponsored and financially motivated actors, showing that healthcare’s valuable innovations increase overall risk.
• Insider threats come from employees or contractors, whether intentional or accidental. Access to sensitive data and systems can be misused, making strong monitoring and access controls essential to reduce cybersecurity risks in healthcare.

Layer 1 Vulnerabilities and Hardware-Based Cybersecurity Risks in Healthcare

Layer 1 vulnerabilities are a critical factor in cybersecurity risks in healthcare, as threat actors increasingly exploit hardware-based weaknesses. Hardware security is a specialized area of cybersecurity, and existing solutions, such as Network Access Control (NAC), Endpoint Protection Systems (EPS), Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS), or Internet of Things (IoT) network security, do not provide complete Layer 1 visibility.

As a result, healthcare providers often lack full asset visibility, making it difficult to detect vulnerable or rogue devices. This blind spot allows hardware attack tools to bypass security protocols, even stringent Zero Trust measures. Without clear insight into what is operating within the infrastructure, organizations have limited control over their assets, leaving them highly susceptible to hardware-based attacks. Ultimately, this lack of visibility amplifies cybersecurity risks in healthcare, as hidden hardware threats can jeopardize patient safety.

Hardware-based attacks require physical access to the organization. Specifically, rogue devices must be present within the target infrastructure for the attack to occur. Moreover, several vulnerabilities in the healthcare environment increase accessibility, thereby enabling these attacks.

Key Vulnerabilities in Healthcare Cybersecurity

Interconnected Environment

Healthcare delivery systems are highly interconnected, allowing attackers to move laterally from one compromised device to the wider network. The growing number of devices, combined with IT and OT integration through IoMT, further increases entry points and potential threats.

Limited network segmentation and a lack of Layer 1 visibility leave vulnerable IoMT devices exposed. This puts other medical equipment at risk and highlights critical cybersecurity risks in healthcare from hardware threats.

Remote and Accessible Devices

Remote work and connected devices create additional entry points. IoMT devices and traditional endpoints, such as laptops, often store or provide access to sensitive data, making them prime targets. The spread of remote access points continues to heighten cybersecurity risks in healthcare and expand the threat landscape.

Supply Chain Exposure

Suppliers can introduce vulnerabilities, therefore acting as gateways for rogue devices or compromised hardware. Even highly secured healthcare entities are at risk if third-party devices are exploited. Data sharing and integration with suppliers can extend the attack surface, with real-world examples such as COVID vaccine distribution breaches highlighting these threats. These weaknesses underline critical cybersecurity risks in healthcare stemming from the supply chain.

How Sepio Mitigates Hardware Cybersecurity Risks in Healthcare

Sepio’s Asset Risk Management platform identifies, assesses, and mitigates all known and shadow assets at any scale, in real time. By leveraging physical layer data, it provides complete asset visibility and uncovers hardware-level risks that traditional cybersecurity tools cannot detect.

Using physical layer data, Sepio generates a DNA profile for every asset, ensuring accurate risk assessment free from misleading assumptions. This centralized, reliable visibility enables organizations to manage all assets with confidence.

Each asset is assigned an Asset Risk Factor (ARF) score, derived from its DNA profile, business context, and predefined policies. This score prioritizes risks from high to low, enabling teams to respond rapidly, identify regulatory gaps, and prevent potential crises. Additionally, continuous monitoring, AI-driven analytics, and OSINT-based threat intelligence enhance IT efficiency while strengthening overall asset cybersecurity.

Protect Your Organization Against Cybersecurity Risks in Healthcare

Sepio enforces hardware usage policies automatically. Assets violating rules or identified as threats are immediately blocked, enabling instant and automated risk mitigation.

With a trafficless approach, Sepio scales across entire ecosystems without resource-heavy analysis, IT disruption, or compliance concerns. Implementation takes less than 24 hours.

Sepio integrates seamlessly with existing cybersecurity tools such as NACs, EDRs, XDRs, and Zero Trust solutions, enhancing their effectiveness and providing greater value from IT and security investments.

Ready to enhance your cybersecurity? Schedule a demo to see how we can protect your healthcare organization!