Running Head: Cybersecurity 1

Cybersecurity Analysis at Saint Mary Hospital

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Cybersecurity at Saint Mary Hospital

Network Security and vulnerabilities at Saint Mary Hospital

Often, whenever we talk about a company’s network, references a company's network

points to either the Wide Area Network (abbr. WAN) or the Local Area Network (abbr. LAN).

Due to the various privacy information which are stored in the healthcare network system, in

order to discuss in detail the subject of cybersecurity, an imaginary healthcare entity was

approached named Saint Mary Hospital which handles 100 patients daily on average. The small

number of patients visit allow a better focus on the network system which represents the purpose

of this research paper. LAN is the primary IT infrastructure network whereby it offers services to

more than 100 end-user devices. The data hosted in the system includes but is not limited to the

patient's data, research, facility financial details, and medical-related protocol information

(Humayun et al.,2020). Due to the extensive data load couple with its importance to the facility,

there is a need to implement secure network systems. Across the years, publications point out to

various situation of network infiltration which are related to associated cyber crimes leading to

hefty losses on the affected firms. It is essential first to analyze the Hospital's system

architecture, the network's security system, and the vulnerability the treats possess to the system

before detailing the other issues. A LAN's overview and its significance to the security needs

also have to be addressed.

The Architecture of the IT System

In system management, there is a need to have high and extensive skills experts. Some of

the complex systems to be dealt with include designing the algorithm, the computer architecture,

design methodologies, and even its networking system. The network architecture system
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elaborates on the techniques and practices that it employs to facilitate solutions to a wide range

of system design issues. These include performance, security-related issues, management, and

the quality of services. Having been structured into layers, the organization hones a model that is

easy to understand. A three-tier architecture is what logically forms the network system. The first

layer is the application layer that entails the end-user devices, the second layer is called the

middle layer and comprises the multitude servers that characterizes the organizations network

system. The final layer is the data warehouse that houses the database.

Potential Threats and Solutions

In most organizations, vulnerability threats and network security are the greatest

nuisances in their operations. The hardware and the software components are on the base of the

security organization. They are specifically designed to protect the information in a continuous

process and the organized data in the networking system (Tarter,2017). Besides, the same

components play a vital role by offering preventative mechanisms to protect the network

infrastructure entirely. They equally shield from unauthorized access, data modification,

improper disclosure and, corruption. The system aims to design and create a conducive

environment where operators can carry out their duties safely and conveniently.

The frequently vulnerabilities when it comes to cybersecurity

As sophistication in systems grows, security threats as well increase. The extent of harm

from these threats largely depends on how vulnerable the network is. The vulnerabilities are the

identifiable weaknesses in the network that can easily permit aggression acts that may eventually

lead to a blockage of the system. Computer virus attacks, hacker assaults, and other network

aggression forms eventually happen if the network security system is left unattended. The table
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below illustrates various IT system assets with their respective vulnerabilities and the necessary

measures to counter them.

The Assets Potential threats Security measures which

need to be approached

In reference to various The potential threats can be Change outdated hardware to

hardware components such as divided into: ensure that the latest versions

it is the case of are running, implement the

- Natural disasters which
communication systems, hardware firewalls which will
leads to a physical
servers, computer, printers. deny external or unwanted
destruction off the
access, documentation
hardware.
serving as an insurance for
- Human errors which can
possible destruction, and
result in malfunctions
various hardware security
- Theft due to low security
methods such as it is the case
in the organization
of usage of cryptographic

keys.

In reference to the various This represents the As in the case of hardware, it

software components which centerpiece of cyberattack is vital to ensure that

are used in the presented through the usages of: softwares are kept updated as

healthcare organization such they come with their own

 Viruses
as: protection system.
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-Microsoft Office  Malicious Software’s Frequent scans through the

 Weak passwords usage of official antivirus

-Windows
which allows external software which detects
-Adobe software
access vulnerabilities before damage

-Quick books is irreversible.

 Bluesnarefing

(unauthorized access Implementing password

through Bluetooth policies which will keep the
connection) communication system

enclosed and safe from

external access.

In reference to data which can Some of the vulnerabilities The company needs to

lead to legal actions such as: are related to the other two implement frequent and safe

circumstances presented backups for the data to remain

- Intellectual property
above such as: in the system in case of a
- Organization critical
cyber attack.
information -Malware

- Trade Secrets Robust passwords should be

- Human related error
- Personal information requested to ensure that
-Phishing
- Financial Information in confidential data are kept

regard to the hospital -External or unauthorized under protection and that

assets. access to these personal personal information are not

- Personal data of the information divulged.

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employees which are -Ransomware Data encryption .

stored in the system.

Other possible network vulnerabilities and their impact on the organizations function

The Vulnerability Potential threats Impact on organization

approached

Weakness in relation to the Attacks related to It leads to a high usage of the

protocol authentication methods CPU processor

Backdoor Hosting and errors In relation to possible It exposes confidential data

in terms of designing the exploitation. which are stored in the system

network system and makes the management

information vulnerable for

cyberattacks.

Misconfiguration of the Spoofing Leads to rout flaps and a

system signification transition in

terms of the network system.

Vulnerability in terms of Represents an additional rout Malfunction of the software’s

software of exploitation for possible and provides access from

hackers. external sources. The

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software’s need to be

maintain updated to ensure

the protection of the network

system.

Observing the above table shows that security challenges seem to increase daily in the

Hospital's computing setup. Three fronts that entail the software, hardware and data that

comprise the organizational details are all challenged. The computing platform encompasses

various elements such as the used applications, the operating system on the computer and also

the hardware. (Humayun et al.,2020). The hardware serves as the mechanism by which the

Operating System or any other application is installed and operated. The operating system offers

the channel through which the hardware operated from the outside communicates with the

installed applications. In current moments, there is cloud infrastructure, cloud computing

category, software-a service dubbed SaaS that provides both software and hardware, thus

supplanting the internal information systems. In some instances, we have entities considering

third-party companies to run software developed and customized as per its own needs on its

behalf. Under such circumstances, the organization surrenders its hardware components to a third

party to offer a web-based alternative. Eventually, costs result from these services, and the

organization has to treat them as utility bills due to the storage charges and telecommunications.

Local Area Network Security

The Local Area Network (LAN) is an interconnection of devices resulting from the

connection of computing devices to resource sharing. For many years, computer networks have
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mainly been organized into two main categories. The Local Area Network is connectivity whose

limitation is within a building or a specific office. Once it is expanded to cover more operation

areas, it is referred as Wide Area Network (WAN). WAN has been observed to cover larger

geographical parcels while encompassing leased circuits for telecommunications. In recent, IT

demands have increasingly grown, thereby forcing players to develop an innovative way out.

Traditionally, LAN and WAN networks have been dependent on hardware and software. The

system faced lots of limitations as the organization started to respond to technological demand

levels.

LANs have continuously encountered myriad cyber-related threats that include but are

not limited to unauthorized access, spoofing, functional disruption, and data disclosure. Hence

there is a need to put up measures that will safeguard the integrity, confidentiality, and constant

data sharing availability. Through the use of the cloud computing model, organizations have

embraced better technological demands. They have also got the surety of privacy and data

security which is allied to identity requirements. The model facilitates universal, on-demand

network access to configurable pooled computing resources like applications, networks, services,

and servers (Kalakuntla et al., 2019). The model's significant characteristics include resource

pooling, on-demand self-service, broad network, considerable rapid elasticity, service models-

SaaS, measured service, PaaS, and IaaS.

The Architecture of the Cloud concept and various deployment models

The cloud computing deployed models are majorly grouped into the community cloud,

private cloud, public clouds, and hybrid cloud. On the other hand, cloud architecture describes

the responsibilities, the roles and also the five major actors of the system. The actors entail the

cloud auditor, cloud consumer, provider, carrier, and a broker. Each actor is either an
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organization or a person that has a role in cloud computing (Shen, Lindenbergh & Wang, 2017).

To illustrate, a cloud auditor develops a valuable and essential task for the government. It is done

through running independent performances and also through a very secured and in depth

monitoring of the organizations cloud-rendered services; a cloud consumer is an entity or a

person who receives and consumes cloud services and products. The cloud broker is the

intermediary between the producer and the consumer. He offers guidance to the consumers to

maneuver through the complexities presented by the cloud services Mell & Grance (2011). The

carrier bears the data transfer responsibilities in the organization. The act is quite similar to that

of an electric power distribution grid.

Card Access Strategies

For user authentication, the Common Access Cards (which is abbreviated CAC) is

implemented for further protection. The technology applied uses a smart card that is designed

with an integrated chip. All the sensitive data is stored in the integrated chip. It is possible to

encrypt real data stored on cards themselves. The move aids in retrieving data in case of a

destroyed or damaged chip. To manage the security and vital company details, the Hospital may

opt to employ the CAC services. The move will also improve the flexibility of information

stored. Divulging a portion of the businesses and cyber benefits that adopt the CAC technology

in the Hospital would prove a sensible move (Tarter,2017). To start with, the IT department is

saved the hustle of occasionally having to oversee the akin process of physical form of

identification before allowing any type of access to the system, be it key or critical. Presently, the

Hospital's IT officers are responsible for maintaining the database-one pool of information. All

related details are stored in the same section of the company's database. The staff members have

to prove authenticity any time they need to access workstations with shared resources. The CACs
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reduce the IT team's security responsibility and distributes it to all the staff members who have

been assigned the cards.

Through the use of cards, the staff will be more flexible in their operations. They can

efficiently operate from one point of the Hospital to another without incurring additional costs.

As per the current technological situation, every employee operates at a fixed workstation apart

from the nurses and physicians who can discharge their duties from different points. The

employees have to use the end user devices such as PCs, scanners, and printers to interact with

the system. Computer extension components that readily allow touching, swiping and pressing

will be installed to accompany the cards to enhance their usability. To enhance the workability,

the cards have to be synchronized with the company's database, the Hospital's enterprise, to the

system which processes the resources resource processing system, and nevertheless to Saint Mar

y’s decision support network. To ensure the card becomes a super-secure device, data encryption

is vital. In case the cards get lost or fall into the hands of unauthorized persons, the whole

hospital's data might be either mishandled or completely get lost (Rawal et al.2016). In

encryption, a particular code is employed to both crypts and decrypt any given information. The

recipient, on the other end, uses the same code to decrypt and get the details.

CACs has got one setback. In most cases, some keys are employed in any card to

circumvent the security set protocols. Apart from the card owner who knows the password,

another party is entrusted with storing the passwords. There is an individual who has got all the

keys-he can change the keys. The system is synonymous with that of Bank's Credit card pins.

The banks have got millions of users. In case a person loses his number, it will require the

service provider to undergo a tedious and costly exercise to reach the stored number. Hence the

easiest option is to issue a new card to the account holder. According to Kruse et al.(2016),
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banks' cards are system protected and assist the users in carrying out all the authenticated

activities that include but not limited to depositing and withdrawal of various funds, printing the

accounts statements and also providing overdrafts.. To overcome the drawback, the modern

technology key cryptography is the mechanism frequently applied in order to be able to

confiscate the system. Some cards have got certificate annulment lists. The user is automatically

alerted and issued another mail instantly whenever the certificate revocation occurs. The process

is deemed smart as no individual is burdened with the role of keeping certificates. The servers do

not have to design passwords-the users as well. Besides, the user is always issued a security code

through his/her preferred communication channel. These channels which were mentioned tend to

include email and other short message delivery services yet it is not limited to only these options.

Should there arise a need for the administrator to access the system, he can only do it through the

login way. He cannot get the code through any manipulation. In case a user is on an

investigation, his card is frozen, and he cannot access the facility during the period.

Various Encryption Approaches

Technological advancement is snowballing. According to Williams et al.(2015) the

threats affecting technology are as well growing daily. Hence the technology developers have to

remain vigilant and outpace malicious persons before they infiltrate into the system. The

developers have decided to be reactive rather than active, and they mostly watch the techniques

the infiltrators use to attack the system. They hence commence on improving the system based

on the observations they make to seal the loopholes. All along, there have been several attempts

to attack the data systems. The trend does not seem to quell soon unless infiltrators change their

ways. Every organization's information technology and infrastructure is under threat by both

insiders and outsiders. To filter out some of the threats, the IT security management has
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constructed discriminative rules to restrict access to the systems. Employing Encryption

technologies is among the few mechanisms to cushion systems from attacks in the data

warehouses, systems, and company websites.

Encryption techniques have greatly improved the confidentiality of organizations in

information assets management. There are several approved techniques used to conduct data

encryption. In an organization, the encryption procedure has to be documented to make it

organizational rather than individual-based. For the Saint Mary Hospital, the most critical data

entails the patient's health records, strategic plan, and financial information. The critical data

have to be encrypted so that it is only the management and the most trusted employees can

access the decrypting key. Currently, encryption is regarded to be the most trusted means to

maintain information confidentiality. Encryption can be implemented in two main ways;

symmetric and asymmetric encryption. A single passcode key is frequently chosen to be shared

by all trusted employees who handle the encryption details in the symmetric case. The single

passcode key is frequently implemented by the organization to both decrypt and also encrypt the

message at the sender's, and receiver's ends, respectively. Asymmetric encryption is a bit detailed

in that it encompasses a mathematical type of formula which focuses on primary key

characterized by privacy. In the organization operation, the user uses the primary key to channel

a set of information. The information is decrypted at the receiver's end with the aid of the

sender's private key.

Security of confidential emails

The main attack models employed by attackers entail phishing, ransomware, and spear-

phishing. It is easy to apply the model in email attacks. To strategize about email security, one

has first to understand the scam's operations. To begin with, he has to mine information and
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subtle details concerning the system users. LinkedIn is among the elements of the social

networks they use. Then they get vital details such as email addresses and contacts. Another

source of more information is from resumes uploaded at insecure sights where employers are

expected to find them. The hackers then obtain the email details or use them to send spear-

phishing or phishing codes directly to the user. In most instances, the targeted individuals click

the links, and data automatically flows to the attacker.

The email remains the primary method of communication in the corporate world. Hence

there an urgency to ensure it remains secure from infiltration (Tarter,2017). In almost all the

cases which are related to hacking situations that affected reputable organizations, the email

setting was the point of attack which lead to the infiltration to the network. It represented the

access point for external sources. Like in many entities, email has been the main channel of

communication in the Saint Mary Hospital between physicians, nurses, and patients. By

observation, it is clear that email has been the main communication channel in the Hospital.

However, it has not been used prudently. The staff has been observed to leave their email

accounts logged in. Most passwords are weak and have lasted for a long (Ali, Khan & Vasilakos,

2015). There have been eleven reported cases of suspected spam messages directly sent to

complainant's inboxes in three months. Out of the total reported cases, four complainants

claimed that their PCs restarted automatically upon clicking the links they received. Another two

of the four later found that there was a permanent deletion of their recent inbox messages.

Encryption has been ascertained to be among the most secure ways to handle emails.

However, alone it may not be effective and has to be complimented. Some other measures to put

in place include setting strong passwords, employing safe browsers when logging in, and Log out

immediately after completing the task. There is also a need to adopt new techniques in handling
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spams to neutralize its effects. One can either choose to delete it without opening it or leaving it

to disappear by itself (Tarter,2017). Having a firewall just by the network gateway is the safest

way to protect the mail server. Any malicious codes will be detected blocked in time before they

access the system. A combination of installed firewalls coupled with encryption is the standard

practice that ensures email safety. However, it is vital to understand that the integrity of the

system and the security of it tends to be subject of possible natural attacks which are hard to

prevent . In 2008 Yahoo mail got an attack that breached all the defenses the company had

erected in more than a decade.

Conclusion

Both hosts and clients are victims of a cyber-attacks-a violation of private property. A

whole system is in jeopardy whenever a part of it is exposed, and hence there is a drastic

necessity if erecting protection at all points. It is not a difficult task to protect hosts. The

application of firewall and antivirus serves to preserve the hosts against unauthorized access or

scams. Some of the ideal strategies employed to secure systems against infiltration include using

multiple keys for email bypass security, where one key has the capacity only to encrypt.

In contrast, the other has got both encrypting and decrypting capacities. The highlighted

strategies aim to aid an organization to have a secure system with its emails and other details

being safe. However, there is a need for updating the system from time to time as new kinds of

threats emerge.

To sum up, this report has insightfully detailed on information systems and infrastructure

of the Saint Mary hospital. The issues highlighted are essential to Hospital management and any

other IT readers and scholars in other occupations. Fundamental issues concerning networking,
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information systems, and database security are vital in any establishment. The report unsnarls the

significant threats and susceptibilities every organization encounters in its daily operations.

There is a general observation that an insecure network and also vulnerability to the various

cyber threats,as the ones depicted in this paper, are the main bothers to any organization when it

comes to its operations. Both hardware and software components form the security of the

organizational network base. The two are designed to protect the organization's data and all other

details in the network. Towards the conclusion, the report highlights the areas susceptible to

insecurity, especially the email and the various strategies used to deploy cards. Also, the report

emphasizes encryption technologies coupled with other security features that may be put in place

to ensure maximum security of the entire organization through its IT department.

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References

Humayun, Mamoona & Niazi, Mahmood & Zaman, Noor & Alshayeb, Mohammad &

Mahmood, Sajjad. (2020). Cyber Security Threats and Vulnerabilities: A Systematic

Mapping Study. Arabian Journal for Science and Engineering. 45. 10.1007/s13369-019-

04319-2.

Kalakuntla, Rohit & Vanamala, Anvesh & Kolipyaka, Ranjith. (2019). Cyber Security. Holistica.

10. 115-128. 10.2478/hjbpa-2019-0020.

Kruse, Clemens & Frederick, Benjamin & Jacobson, Taylor & Monticone, D.. (2016).

Cybersecurity in healthcare: A systematic review of modern threats and trends.

Technology and Health Care. 25. 1-10. 10.3233/THC-161263.

Rawal, Bharat & Liang, Songjie & Loukili, Alae & Duan, Qiang. (2016). Anticipatory Cyber

Security Research: An Ultimate Technique for the First-Move Advantage. TEM Journal.

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clouds: The baseline method. Sensors, 17(1), 26.

Tarter, Alex. (2017). Importance of Cyber Security. 10.1007/978-3-319-53396-4_15.

Toch, Eran & Bettini, Claudio & Shmueli, Erez & Radaelli, Laura & Lanzi, Andrea & Riboni,

Daniele & Lepri, Bruno. (2018). The Privacy Implications of Cyber Security Systems: A

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Usanov, Artur. (2015). Assessing Cyber Security: A Meta-analysis of Threats, Trends, and

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Williams, Patricia & Woodward, Andrew. (2015). Cybersecurity vulnerabilities in medical

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Appendix

Figure 1: Depiction of the frequency of various cybersecurity threats. It is vital to understand

which of these threats are more frequent in order for the organization to be able to

prioritize the protection options adequately.

Figure 2: A depiction of the most frequently involved groups in cyber-attacks.