The U.S. healthcare system is constantly battling data breaches, with cybercriminals gaining access to sensitive patient information they sell on the black web, according to McClatchyDC.
Here are four thoughts:
1. Since the middle of last year, the healthcare industry has encountered 22 major data computer breaches, resulting in millions of lost patient records.
2. The "2016 Healthcare Industry Cybersecurity Research Report" found almost 33 percent of the largest U.S. hospitals are slow to install security patches to combat cyber vulnerabilities.
3. A person's Social Security number, birth date and account numbers are valued between $14 to more than $25 per record, while medical records' value ranging between 0.25 cents to o $2.42 per record.
4. Despite its lesser value, cybercriminals continue to attack the healthcare industry because organizations have many vulnerabilities and do not practice as rigorous defensive practices as the financial and energy sectors.