response across the entire healthcare ecosystem.
Implementing a Sector-Wide Response
As the healthcare attack surface expands, it’s increasingly clear that ransomware is no longer a challenge any single organization can tackle alone. The recent attacks on Octapharma and OneBlood demonstrated the far-reaching impact that extends beyond the healthcare facilities themselves. When a critical supplier is compromised, downstream providers – such as hospitals and clinics – can face severe disruptions, including delays in blood transfusions or access to essential medications.
In today’s interconnected healthcare ecosystem, no entity operates in isolation. This reality makes cross-border and cross-sector collaboration essential. Cybercriminals operate without regard for national boundaries, and our defenses must be equally borderless. By sharing timely threat intelligence with international partners, government agencies, and industry peers, we create a stronger, more resilient collective defense that can anticipate and mitigate attacks before they escalate.
A prime example of effective collaboration is the 2021 disruption of the HIVE ransomware group. HIVE was one of the most prolific ransomware gangs globally, notorious for attacking critical infrastructure sectors, including healthcare. The group’s attacks often involved encrypting victim systems and demanding substantial ransoms, sometimes accompanied by threats to release stolen sensitive data publicly. Their ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) model allowed affiliates to launch attacks while HIVE’s core operators handled ransom negotiations and payouts, making the group both scalable and difficult to trace.
In response, a coordinated international law enforcement operation, comprising agencies including the FBI, Europol, and cybersecurity firms, targeted HIVE’s infrastructure and key actors. This joint effort not only dismantled significant portions of HIVE’s network but also provided decryption keys and recovery support to dozens of affected healthcare organizations. The operation demonstrated the power of global cooperation in fighting ransomware, highlighting that since cybercriminals work across borders, so must defenders.
It’s Time to Think Globally
The HIVE example yields a powerful moral: the future of cyber defense lies in collaboration. What’s more, that collaboration needs to transcend borders. Healthcare today is inherently global. From multinational research cooperatives and international pharmaceutical supply chains to telemedicine services and cloud-based patient data management, cross-border interdependence permeates every aspect of care delivery. Cyber adversaries exploit this complexity, leveraging global infrastructure and networks to launch attacks that transcend geography.
Yet, many health sector organizations still treat cybersecurity primarily as a domestic issue. This narrow perspective is a significant vulnerability. A ransomware variant detected in Australia one day could easily appear in a U.S. hospital the next. A breach in a European biotech company can have cascading effects on clinical trials and medical supplies worldwide.
To counter these threats, health sector entities must actively build partnerships with Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs), cybersecurity authorities, and regulatory bodies – not just locally but internationally. Health-ISAC, for example, offers real-time threat intelligence, mitigation guidance, and incident coordination resources tailored to healthcare organizations of all sizes across more than 140 countries. Hospitals can also benefit from collaborating with regional partners, including academic medical centers and public health agencies, to conduct cross-organizational cybersecurity drills and simulate coordinated responses to ransomware attacks.
