Lawmakers Ask HHS to Provide Information on Cyber Posture

The Cyberspace Solarium Commission is asking the Department of Health and Human Services to provide more information on ransomware attacks against health care networks.

In a letter addressed to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, Sen. Angus King and Rep. Mike Gallagher asked for a briefing with the agency to identify ways to address cybersecurity gaps across the health care sector. They said bad actors know that health care and public health organizations pay quicker to resolve issues and protect patient safety.

King and Gallagher are seeking an evaluation of the agency’s organizational structure, vulnerabilities, cyber workforce and budget resources, Nextgov reported.

In July, the FBI, the Department of the Treasury and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency issued a joint warning saying that North Korean state-sponsored hackers have been using ransomware to target U.S. hospitals since May 2021. The agencies noted that the actors used the Maui ransomware to encrypt health care services, including electronic health records and diagnostics services.

The lawmakers said in their letter that having a better understanding of the department’s cybersecurity posture would allow for the organization of public-private partnerships for cyber threat mitigation.

The U.S. government has put a stronger emphasis on defending private and public organizations against ransomware and other cyber threats. In 2021, President Joe Biden signed his cybersecurity executive order, which requires federal agencies to improve their threat detection capabilities.