The experts call it “emergent properties”: malware and bugs that attack medical devices through outdated software used by medical offices, clinics and hospitals. Study Finds Medical Device Flaws Go Unfixed.
“TrapX staff traced back attacks to compromised PCs associated with radiation oncology systems, PACS (picture archive and communications systems) that serve multiple different radiologic systems.The continued presence of unsupported and outdated machines leaves hospitals extremely vulnerable to attack – even using code designed to exploit known security issues that have long since been patched.”
We are pursuing class actions for patients whose medical and financial records were exposed because an oncology service allowed hackers to surveil their patient’s records and films for over three months. The hack might have continued forever if the FBI had not stepped in to alert the oncologists of the breach.
Medical devices and equipment can fail in the health care environment for many reasons, including human error. This chronic condition of equipment and technology failure can expose patients to health risks as well as data breach: power outages at dialysis clinics; problems acting timely on films read by “telemedicine”; patients discharged from the hospital prematurely because an abnormal lab result “missed” the chart; outdated equipment spitting out undiagnostic results that are not recognized properly. We have investigated and pursued examples of each one of these potentially catastrophic adverse events.
Make sure your personal injury lawyer is experienced in reviewing the details and records of your case, capable of applying experience gained by years of digging deep and prosecuting serious failures in the health care environment.
