If you've tuned into the cybersecurity news lately, you'll notice many MSPs are being challenged with having lax security measures for the businesses and government entities they service.
At a recent meeting of the National Association of Secretaries of State, Louisiana Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin took a swipe at MSPs. "MSPs attempt to protect systems on a 'very basic level' to ensure operability," he stated. He went on to further describe detection and prevention – explaining the state of Louisiana's recent experiences with ransomware attacks.
While true, there are many MSPs using outdated security protocols that aren't prepared for the current cyberthreat landscape – which explains the Louisiana snafu – there are other MSPs that are prepared.
For any organization to thrive in the digital era, it’s imperative that they partner with an MSP that has a strong focus on security. Especially in the healthcare industry, with healthcare records selling for nearly 50X what credit card data sells for on the black market.
Healthcare orgs need an MSP partner that is HITRUST certified and prepared to protect them from the pervasive and emerging threats listed below.
Personalized Phishing and More
Phishing is one of the easiest types of attacks to execute because it doesn't require any high-level coding skills. All a cybercriminal has to do is craft an email convincing enough to lure its recipients to malicious websites or into opening malware-packed documents. Even if just one victim responds, the attack is considered a success.
On the other hand, spear-phishing attacks are much more personalized as the threat actor takes time to study a colleague or partner with the goal of impersonation. And then, the focus is on gaining access to financial data or credentials.
One of the fastest-growing cybersecurity threats to date is credential theft. This is where threat actors use social engineering and attempt to appear as a trusted brand. For example, the threat actor might pretend to be your streaming service asking you to head to a malicious site to re-enter your login credentials. Just one compromised account can lead to deeper attacks within your network. To mitigate this threat, always enable MFA on your access keys.
Then, there are the omnipresent ransomware attacks which seem to make the headlines every single day. When systems are encrypted, businesses – and government entities – are essentially frozen and can't perform business as usual.
Not to mention, many companies – and the MSPs that service them – have outdated systems which leave them open to ransomware attacks.
Healthcare organizations would benefit from choosing an MSP partner that automates infrastructure processes, ensuring that systems are updated and secured accordingly.
Keeping Up With the Evolving Security Landscape
Problem is, many organizations have adopted the cloud on the developer side but have not evolved their practices on the security side to support these cloud initiatives, resulting in exposure.
If your organization has a cloud footprint, there are advantages to outsourcing cloud security to an MSP that is born in the cloud, rather than outsourcing to an MSP that is working to evolve its digital practices into the cloud.
Ready to Partner With an MSP That Provides Real Security?
If you're interested in staying on top of today's cloud threats, the right MSP can fill in the gaps. For healthcare, an MSP that focuses exclusively on healthcare and HIPAA is optimal. Reach out today for a free consultation.
