Preventing a Cyber Attack Against the CEO of a Healthcare Organization
Challenge
A recent cyberattack targeting the CEO of a healthcare organization was successfully prevented using Adlumin MDR. The attack posed a serious threat to the organization's financial stability, operational continuity, and public reputation.
Results
While the attack was prevented, this incident underscores the necessity for continuous, proactive, and comprehensive cybersecurity measures to effectively counter evolving threats and safeguard critical business assets. It also underscores the effectiveness of Adlumin MDR.
About Real IT Care
Real IT Care
Employees: 300
Founded in: 2009
Partner since: 2024
- N‑able solutions:
- Adlumin Security Operations
Having that SOC 24/7 that’s able to actionably bring security is a huge piece of mind and it’s a very easy sale when we bring it to our clients now.
Zane Patalive Owner , Real IT Care
Challenge
Targeted Cyber Attack Against CEO
In a recent incident, we successfully thwarted a sophisticated cyber attack aimed at the CEO of a healthcare organization. The attack, which targeted one of the key figures in a healthcare organization with sensitive patient data, presented a significant risk to the company’s finances, operations, and reputation. On a late Friday afternoon, the CEO received an email that appeared to come from a trusted source. The email was, however, part of a business email compromise (BEC) attack. The sender’s account had been hacked and was being used by an attacker to deliver fraudulent emails. The CEO, unaware of the breach, fell victim to the phishing attempt and unwittingly provided his login credentials.
Attack Details
Initial Breach: The attacker used the CEO’s credentials to gain access to his corporate email account, Microsoft 365.
Exploitation of Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): Despite the CEO using 2FA, the attacker was able to bypass this security measure. This suggests that the attacker likely had access to the CEO’s second factor of authentication or employed a phishing technique that tricked the CEO into granting access.
Suspicious Activity: Once logged in, the hacker began combing through sensitive emails and files, potentially looking for financial data or sensitive patient information that could be exploited.
Solution
Quick Detection and Response
Thanks to our partnership with N‑able and the robust 24×7 security operations team, the breach was detected within minutes. The power of the XDR Platform coupled with the MDR team (Managed Detection and Response) immediately triggered alerts, notifying us of the suspicious activity on the CEO’s account.
Our incident response team took swift action
Account Lockdown: We immediately intervened to lock out the attacker from the compromised account, terminating the session and preventing any further unauthorized access.
Backdoor Rule Removal: The attacker had created backdoor access rules to maintain persistent access. We identified and removed these backdoors, ensuring that the hacker could not regain access at a later time.
Damage Mitigation: We also reviewed the activity logs to assess any potential data exfiltration or manipulation. Fortunately, due to our rapid intervention, no sensitive data was lost or compromised.
Resultados
Prevention of Significant Damage
Thanks to our quick response, we were able to:
Stop the attack in its tracks: The attack was halted within minutes of detection, before the attacker could achieve their objectives. Prevent Financial Loss: By shutting down the active breach, we potentially saved the organization tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses, including the cost of recovery, data loss, or potential ransom payments.
Preserve Reputation: The swift containment of the attack also helped avoid reputational damage that could have resulted from the exposure of sensitive patient data or service disruptions.
Lessons Learned
While our rapid response prevented significant damage, the incident underscored some key areas for improvement:
User Education: The CEO’s lack of awareness around phishing attacks and the sophistication of modern threats contributed to the success of the attack. Regular, ongoing security training for all employees, particularly executives, is critical to reducing the risk of falling victim
to social engineering attacks.
Multi-Layered Defense: While 2FA was in place, attackers can sometimes bypass even these protections if they can gain access to other elements of the account. A more robust multi-layered defense strategy—including email filtering, user awareness, and monitoring for abnormal
activity—would provide additional layers of protection.
Incident Response Readiness: The effectiveness of our response was due in large part to the comprehensive incident response plan we had in place, including continuous monitoring and a well-trained security team ready to act at a moment’s notice.
This incident highlights both the sophistication of modern cyber threats and the importance of a proactive, multi-faceted cybersecurity strategy. By having a 24×7 SOC watching and detecting the breach early and responding swiftly, we not only protected our client from significant financial loss but also ensured the
continuity of their operations and preserved their reputation in a highly sensitive industry. Moving forward, we will continue to work with our client to enhance their employee training, refine security protocols, and ensure that the best defenses are in place to protect against evolving cyber threats.
