The NTT Security Q3 Quarterly Threat Intelligence Report states that the healthcare industry is the fifth most targeted industry for ransomware (behind financial services, retail, manufacturing and technology) for all cyber attacks.

Malware increased in the healthcare sector by 67 percent in the third quarter of 2016. Viruses and worms account for 63 percent of those attacks, adware and malware for 28 percent of those attacks, Trojans/droppers for 12 percent of the attacks and Keyloggers and spyware representing 2 percent of the attacks.

Spam email with malicious attachments continue to be the main way the malware is entering systems, which, according to the study, accounted for 73 percent of the attacks.

Ransomware infections in the healthcare industry increased 17 percent in the third quarter, although in Q2, a staggering 88 percent of all ransomware attacks were against the healthcare industry. In the third quarter, the education sector was the most targeted. The report indicates that overall, ransomware attacks did not decrease, the statistics show that other industries are now being targeted.

It is important to note that no industry is immune from the attacks, and other sectors will continue to be targeted in the future.

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