According to Bloomberg, last year unknown hackers stole $7.5 million from the Department of Health and Human Services by taking over email accounts belonging to the grant recipients and tricking federal employees into transferring funds to malicious accounts.
The payment management system platform that the hackers accessed serves eight other departments, including the Pentagon and the Treasury Department, in addition to the White House, NASA and the Small Business Administration.
Sadly, $1.5 million of the stolen money was intended to fund health care for “the nation’s highest-need communities.”
The news outlet also reported that White House officials were disappointed by Health and Human Services for their lack of urgency in handling of the intrusions. Health and Human Services has since referred the incident to the Office of the Inspector General who claims to be taking it very seriously.
Emily Phelps, VP, Cyware had this comment:
“Given the highly sensitive and valuable data these departments manage, especially when it involves funds for essential services like health care, the risk of cyberattacks cannot be underestimated. This incident not only showcases the vulnerabilities in current systems but also emphasizes the necessity for government agencies to be equipped with advanced tools and real-time intelligence to preemptively identify and combat such threats. Strengthening cybersecurity infrastructure and ensuring immediate and informed responses to cyber threats are imperative to safeguard public sector data and resources.”
The fact that HHS didn’t have the sense of urgency that should be expected after this hack and theft happened is disappointing. Hopefully those who were asleep at the switch are dealt with accordingly.
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This entry was posted on January 20, 2024 at 7:59 am and is filed under Commentary with tags Hacked. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Health and Human Services Pwned And Millions Of Dollars Was Stolen
According to Bloomberg, last year unknown hackers stole $7.5 million from the Department of Health and Human Services by taking over email accounts belonging to the grant recipients and tricking federal employees into transferring funds to malicious accounts.
The payment management system platform that the hackers accessed serves eight other departments, including the Pentagon and the Treasury Department, in addition to the White House, NASA and the Small Business Administration.
Sadly, $1.5 million of the stolen money was intended to fund health care for “the nation’s highest-need communities.”
The news outlet also reported that White House officials were disappointed by Health and Human Services for their lack of urgency in handling of the intrusions. Health and Human Services has since referred the incident to the Office of the Inspector General who claims to be taking it very seriously.
Emily Phelps, VP, Cyware had this comment:
“Given the highly sensitive and valuable data these departments manage, especially when it involves funds for essential services like health care, the risk of cyberattacks cannot be underestimated. This incident not only showcases the vulnerabilities in current systems but also emphasizes the necessity for government agencies to be equipped with advanced tools and real-time intelligence to preemptively identify and combat such threats. Strengthening cybersecurity infrastructure and ensuring immediate and informed responses to cyber threats are imperative to safeguard public sector data and resources.”
The fact that HHS didn’t have the sense of urgency that should be expected after this hack and theft happened is disappointing. Hopefully those who were asleep at the switch are dealt with accordingly.
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This entry was posted on January 20, 2024 at 7:59 am and is filed under Commentary with tags Hacked. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.