Comparitech researchers have published a study looking at healthcare ransomware in Q3 2026. According to the findings, ransomware attacks on the healthcare sector reached a new high with an average of 3.33 attacks per day. Attacks rose by 40 percent when compared to Q2 2026, and more than doubled when compared to the same period last year.
Key findings include:
Healthcare providers
- 192 attacks in total
- 40 confirmed attacks
- 152 unconfirmed attacks
- 618,149 records are known to have been breached in the confirmed attacks
- Median ransom demand: $300,000
The most prolific ransomware strains with the highest number of claims against healthcare providers were The Gentlemen (18), INC (14), KRYBIT and Storm (11 each), and Qilin and Dire Wolf (10 each)
Chaos had the most confirmed attacks (5), followed by INC and The Gentlemen (3 each)
Healthcare businesses
- 114 attacks in total
- 13 confirmed attacks
- 101 unconfirmed attacks
No records are known to have been breached in the confirmed attacks
Median ransom demand of $150,000
The most prolific ransomware strains with the highest number of claims against healthcare companies were Qilin (15) and The Gentlemen (13)
Chaos had the most confirmed attacks (3), followed by The Gentlemen (2)
Rebecca Moody, Head of Data Research at Comparitech had this to say:
“The increases we’ve noted in the healthcare sector are well above average because, unfortunately, it remains one of the most lucrative targets for hackers. Encrypting systems within this sector can have a catastrophic effect, while the datasets often stored by these organizations are a treasure trove of highly sensitive information.
The sector doesn’t appear to be a go-to target for every group, however. Qilin, which has dominated attacks over the last year or so, doesn’t come out on top in our findings. Rather, The Gentlemen is one of the sector’s biggest threats and it’s sharp uptick in attacks since the start of this year has likely added to the increase we’re seeing.
Making sure the basics (frequent backups, patching vulnerabilities, keeping systems up to date, and carrying out cybersecurity training for all employees) remain at the heart of mitigating the risks of these attacks. Equally, when providing updates on attacks as they’re happening, organizations should assume the worst. A number of cases last quarter saw healthcare entities saying that there was no evidence of a breach before backtracking and issuing notifications/warnings to people who may have been affected later. While breaches may not be evident at the start, most hacking groups will have stolen data before encrypting systems.”
You can read more here: https://www.comparitech.com/news/healthcare-ransomware-roundup-q3-2026-stats-on-attacks-ransoms-and-data-breaches/
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Comparitech Healthcare Ransomware: Q3 2026 stats on attacks, ransoms, and data breaches
Comparitech researchers have published a study looking at healthcare ransomware in Q3 2026. According to the findings, ransomware attacks on the healthcare sector reached a new high with an average of 3.33 attacks per day. Attacks rose by 40 percent when compared to Q2 2026, and more than doubled when compared to the same period last year.
Key findings include:
Healthcare providers
The most prolific ransomware strains with the highest number of claims against healthcare providers were The Gentlemen (18), INC (14), KRYBIT and Storm (11 each), and Qilin and Dire Wolf (10 each)
Chaos had the most confirmed attacks (5), followed by INC and The Gentlemen (3 each)
Healthcare businesses
No records are known to have been breached in the confirmed attacks
Median ransom demand of $150,000
The most prolific ransomware strains with the highest number of claims against healthcare companies were Qilin (15) and The Gentlemen (13)
Chaos had the most confirmed attacks (3), followed by The Gentlemen (2)
Rebecca Moody, Head of Data Research at Comparitech had this to say:
“The increases we’ve noted in the healthcare sector are well above average because, unfortunately, it remains one of the most lucrative targets for hackers. Encrypting systems within this sector can have a catastrophic effect, while the datasets often stored by these organizations are a treasure trove of highly sensitive information.
The sector doesn’t appear to be a go-to target for every group, however. Qilin, which has dominated attacks over the last year or so, doesn’t come out on top in our findings. Rather, The Gentlemen is one of the sector’s biggest threats and it’s sharp uptick in attacks since the start of this year has likely added to the increase we’re seeing.
Making sure the basics (frequent backups, patching vulnerabilities, keeping systems up to date, and carrying out cybersecurity training for all employees) remain at the heart of mitigating the risks of these attacks. Equally, when providing updates on attacks as they’re happening, organizations should assume the worst. A number of cases last quarter saw healthcare entities saying that there was no evidence of a breach before backtracking and issuing notifications/warnings to people who may have been affected later. While breaches may not be evident at the start, most hacking groups will have stolen data before encrypting systems.”
You can read more here: https://www.comparitech.com/news/healthcare-ransomware-roundup-q3-2026-stats-on-attacks-ransoms-and-data-breaches/
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This entry was posted on October 15, 2026 at 9:00 am and is filed under Commentary with tags Comparitech. 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.