How MSSPs can help your healthcare IT

Healthcare organizations suffered over 3,900 data breaches between 2005 and 2019, exposing 249 million patient records, according to a study published in Healthcare journal. The research revealed that healthcare represents 61.55% of all data breaches across industries, with hacking incidents accounting for 64.65% of exposed health records. These statistics show the security challenges facing healthcare organizations and demonstrate how Managed Security Service Providers can help deliver the threat detection and incident response capabilities that healthcare environments need to address these growing threats.

The study also showed that 90.49% of hacking-exposed health records occurred between 2015 and 2019, representing a 24,000% increase from the previous five-year period. This exponential growth pattern has continued through the 2020s, with major incidents like the Change Healthcare cyberattack in 2024 affecting pharmacy operations nationwide. This continued rise demonstrates that healthcare organizations can no longer rely on reactive security measures or general IT support to protect patient data and maintain operational continuity.

The evolution of healthcare cyber threats

The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center received 800,944 cybercrime complaints in 2022, with total losses exceeding $10.3 billion according to their annual Internet Crime Report. While the total number of complaints decreased by 5%, financial losses increased by a staggering 49%, demonstrating that cyber attacks are becoming more sophisticated and financially devastating. Phishing schemes alone accounted for 300,497 complaints, making it the most frequently reported cybercrime targeting organizations across all industries.

Healthcare organizations have become prime targets within this broader threat landscape due to the valuable nature of medical data and the importance of uninterrupted patient care, as stated in a study about managing cybersecurity risk published in Sage journals. Major hospital systems including CommonSpirit Health, Shields Health Care Group, and Universal Health Services have suffered attacks that disrupted patient care for weeks, forcing emergency departments to divert ambulances and postponing thousands of non-emergency procedures.

IBM's 2025 Cost of a Data Breach Report reveals that healthcare remains the most expensive industry for breaches at $7.42 million per incident, marking the 14th consecutive year healthcare has topped this costly ranking.

Healthcare breaches also take the longest to identify and contain at 279 days, more than five weeks longer than the global average of 241 days. The FBI report specifically identifies Healthcare and Public Health as the most targeted critical infrastructure sector for ransomware attacks, with 210 incidents reported in 2022.

Business Email Compromise attacks, which resulted in losses of over $2.7 billion in 2022 according to the FBI report, pose risks to healthcare organizations where staff routinely handle sensitive patient information and financial transactions. The sophisticated nature of these attacks, combined with healthcare workers' focus on patient care rather than cybersecurity vigilance, creates an environment where traditional security awareness training proves to be insufficient protection.

MSSPs address these evolving threats through Security Operations Centers that monitor healthcare networks 24/7, using advanced threat intelligence to identify attack patterns specifically targeting medical organizations. Their incident response teams can contain potential breaches within minutes rather than allowing attacks to progress for weeks or months undetected. This approach transforms security from a reactive expense into a strategic defense that protects both patient data and operational continuity when attacks inevitably occur.

HIPAA compliance

Protected health information (PHI) breaches have affected over 176 million patients in the United States, with most resulting from employee negligence and noncompliance with HIPAA regulations rather than external hacking according to StatPearls, a peer-reviewed medical education resource published by the National Institutes of Health. The complexity of HIPAA compliance extends beyond basic encryption requirements to encompass administrative, physical, and technical safeguards that many internal IT teams struggle to implement correctly.

The financial consequences of HIPAA violations are severe and escalating. Civil penalties range from $100 per violation for unknowing breaches to $50,000 per violation with annual maximums reaching $1.5 million for willful neglect that remains uncorrected. Criminal violations carry even steeper penalties, with fines up to $250,000 and imprisonment for up to 10 years for offenses committed with intent to sell health information for commercial advantage or malicious harm. The Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights has received over 100,000 HIPAA violation complaints and investigated over 20,000 cases, according to the medical education resource.

Real-world enforcement demonstrates the serious nature of these penalties. A private practice faced a $150,000 fine for losing an unencrypted flash drive containing PHI. Cignet Health of Maryland paid $4.3 million for ignoring patient requests for medical records. A hospital received a $2.2 million fine for allowing film crews to record patients without consent. These cases illustrate how seemingly minor oversights can result in massive financial penalties that threaten organizational survival.

MSSPs bring expertise in healthcare compliance frameworks that reduce violation risks. They implement the three categories of HIPAA safeguards systematically: administrative safeguards that establish policies and designate privacy officers, physical safeguards that control access to protected data and equipment, and technical safeguards that protect electronic communications and prevent unauthorized system access. Their continuous monitoring capabilities track every access and modification of PHI, creating the detailed audit trails that compliance officers need for regulatory reporting while demonstrating due diligence that can reduce penalties when incidents occur.

The economics of internal security teams

The cybersecurity skills shortage continues to plague healthcare organizations, with 48% reporting high levels of security skills shortages according to IBM's 2025 research. Organizations facing these shortages pay a steep price, with average breach costs reaching

$5.22 million compared to just $3.65 million for organizations with adequate security staffing. While some healthcare organizations successfully manage cybersecurity with internal teams, MSSPs offer an alternative approach that can provide cost efficiencies and specialized expertise, particularly for organizations facing skills shortages or resource constraints.

"It is important for healthcare institutions and payer organizations to understand that the weakest security link in an organization is the human element," notes Amy Larson DeCarlo from GlobalData. "End users are vulnerable to anything that either promises to make a task easier or offers them some kind of reward for clicking on a link.”

The operational impact extends beyond direct costs. IBM's research reveals that 86% of breached organizations experienced operational disruption, a critical concern for healthcare providers where downtime directly affects patient care. Healthcare breaches take an average of 279 days to identify and contain, during which essential services may be compromised and patient safety put at risk. Only 35% of organizations reported complete recovery from breaches, with 76% of those requiring more than 100 days to fully restore operations.

The financial burden continues to rise as organizations struggle to maintain adequate security staffing. The skills shortage forces healthcare organizations to compete in an increasingly expensive market for limited cybersecurity talent, driving up costs while leaving security gaps unfilled. Even when organizations succeed in building internal teams, the $1.57 million cost penalty associated with skills shortages demonstrates that partial solutions create ongoing financial vulnerability.

MSSPs eliminate these challenges through expertise and proven cost efficiencies. IBM's research confirms this value proposition, showing that organizations using managed security service providers save an average of $128,087 per breach compared to those relying solely on internal teams. More importantly, healthcare organizations gain immediate access to security capabilities without the recruitment delays and skills gaps that plague internal security team development.

The IBM report further discusses the economic advantages of MSSPs when considering speed of response. Organizations with extensive use of AI and automation in their security operations reduce breach identification and containment time by 80 days compared to those without these capabilities, translating to cost savings of $1.9 million per incident. MSSPs provide access to these advanced technologies immediately, rather than requiring healthcare organizations to build internal expertise and infrastructure over time.

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The strategic imperative for healthcare organizations

IBM data reveals that only 49% of organizations are planning to increase security investments following a breach, compared to 63% the previous year, many healthcare providers are making dangerous decisions to reduce security spending at precisely the moment when threats are intensifying.

The combination of escalating threats, complex compliance requirements, and economic pressures creates an environment where partnership with specialized security providers can provide operational and financial advantages. Traditional IT support models lack the specialized expertise, continuous monitoring capabilities, and incident response resources needed to protect against sophisticated attacks targeting healthcare environments specifically. The StatPearls research showing that most breaches result from employee negligence rather than external hacking demonstrates why general IT training and basic security measures prove insufficient against modern threat vectors.

MSSPs provide the security capabilities that healthcare organizations need while allowing them to focus resources on patient care rather than cybersecurity management. Their integration of solutions like Paubox creates security postures that address both regulatory compliance and operational efficiency requirements simultaneously. MSSPs deliver both immediate protection and long-term cost benefits that internal teams cannot match.

FAQs

What is Business Email Compromise?

Business Email Compromise (BEC) is a cyberattack where criminals compromise legitimate business email accounts to steal money or sensitive data. Attackers impersonate executives or trusted vendors to request wire transfers or access to protected health information.

What are Security Operation Centers?

Security Operations Centers (SOCs) are facilities where cybersecurity teams monitor and respond to threats 24/7 using advanced tools and threat intelligence.

How do MSSPs help with HIPAA email compliance?

MSSPs provide specialized email encryption platforms that automatically secure communications without user training or patient portals.