Microsoft Publishes Ransomware Whitepaper

The Microsoft Threat Protection Intelligence Team published "Human-operated ransomware attacks: A preventable disaster" and it's a great deep-dive read into understanding how criminals exploit security controls and human beings to deliver malicious payloads for financial profit. We'll link the original article on the Microsoft graphic at the end of this post and encourage all of our partners to read it, in portions if necessary, to broaden their understanding that "this HIPAA stuff" is really MUCH MORE than compliance and that risk and information security are intertwined with the Security Rule citations.

Of particular interest are the flow charts explaining different attack chains and the various methods used by these attacks to eventually render a network inaccessible. It is already suggested that it is just a matter of time before these criminals' work directly leads to a patients death (i.e. a "medical professional liability).

Ransomware will continue to be a relevant attack vector as long as it remains profitable. The groups performing this criminal activity are organized and treat their craft as their job - indeed, it is how they put groceries on the table and cars in the garage no different from you or I using our jobs for the same.