Nine days after a Russian-speaking ransomware syndicate took down the biggest US health care payment processor, pharmacies, health care providers, and patients were still scrambling to fill prescriptions for medicines, many of which are lifesaving.
On Thursday, UnitedHealth Group accused a notorious ransomware gang known both as AlphV and Black Cat of hacking its subsidiary Optum. Optum provides a nationwide network called Change Healthcare, which allows health care providers to manage customer payments and insurance claims. With no easy way for pharmacies to calculate what costs were covered by insurance companies, many had to turn to alternative services or offline methods.
And just watch how quickly it takes for America to do nothing about it.
It’s cheaper to pay the ransom than to pay for cybersecurity
Huge numbers of Americans are on some sort of drug, they will demand action at some point. Most adults I know are on one or more prescription drugs.
Also the demographic that’s on the most drugs is the elderly, and they will call their congressman if they don’t get their meds.
I mean… Yay kind of? For profit health care should absolutely be a target for attack.
If enough people die then maybe there can be change. Oh, who are we kidding. If a few congressmen and their families are slightly inconvenienced, there will be hell fire and change. Otherwise thousands can die and nothing will happen.
