The state of Florida is concerned that cybercriminals may have gained access to some of its most sensitive documents.
Unless the state of Florida pays up, the group claims it will leak 100 terabytes of data from the F-DOH.
Hackers have taken data from the Florida Department of Health, the Jacksonville Beach city government, and the Ascension Health Care System and are holding it for ransom.
The newest breach targeted F-DOH’s critical statistics information, according to the I-TEAM.
According to Berkeley Varitronics CEO and cybersecurity expert Scott Shoberg, hackers frequently target medical and health-related data.
What do we mean when we say that they are aware of data richness? Medical records of any kind. They include a wealth of unique identifiers. Perhaps it’s the medicine you’re taking or your COVID test. It is possible to use all of those codes and other things to make insurance firms pay out inflated sums by invoicing them for bogus claims. According to Shoberg, insurance companies are finding it challenging to keep up.
Only the hack impacted the vital statistics system that issues birth and death certificates has been confirmed by the F-DOH. The Miami Herald reports that this has also affected the state’s tax collector offices and funeral facilities, as they frequently utilize that system.
The F-DOH is in charge of regulating the 67 state health departments as well as the medical field as a whole.
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Some sort of vulnerability was exploited. I won’t claim all government systems are vulnerable, but the majority of them do, according to Shoberg. From a cybersecurity perspective, they must always be correct. But put yourself in the shoes of a cybercriminal.
A single successful attempt will suffice. It might have begun as a harmless phishing attempt. Someone clicked on something and said, “Oh my, what’s this?” Perhaps they are at a hospital or they are government employees. Missing the mark on the redirection. At this point, it downloads malware—specifically, ransomware.
Locals were polled by News4JAX regarding the hack and the state government’s duty to protect Floridians’ most sensitive data.
“Unfortunately, it’s a prime target. More money should be allocated to cybersecurity by the government. It’s crucial, but sadly not used enough,” Briee Hansen stated.
I want to exercise caution here because, in my previous government experience, I’ve seen firsthand how underfunded and in competition with the private sector you are for human resources. “There are numerous factors involved with that. Artificial intelligence (AI), ransomware (and many other things), and other technologies are advancing at a rapid pace.
The idea that these companies have access to our data and may be breached at any moment is horrifying. “That’s extremely disappointing,” Jordan Dzialoski remarked.
Additionally, she expressed her belief that there is no way to avoid having one’s personal information exposed on the internet.
Shoberg emphasized that individuals should never provide their complete Social Security numbers, not even when visiting a doctor.
Nevertheless, my constant advice is to “Stop before you simply fill out that information.” When asked why they divulged personal information, many of us respond with, “Well, I trust my doctor.” Of course, I could. But what about the rest of the folks waiting in line? Is it possible that they sell this data? We have no idea. Opponents insist otherwise. However, a great deal of data is stolen. “Exercise caution,” Shoberg advised.
An annual report released by the Florida Attorney General’s Office states that over the past three years, a state agency has been hacked, exposing the data of over 10 million Floridians.
Private companies have also been the targets of cyberattacks. Notable ones in the past several months include Truist, Ticketmaster, and AT&T.
Meanwhile, a funeral director informed News4JAX that due to the state’s online system being down, they are required to physically visit the healthcare provider to obtain a signed copy of the death certificate. This is necessary to conduct a burial.
