Over the past six months, cybersecurity attacks have increased around the globe, many of which have specifically impacted the health care industry. According to a 2017 Healthcare Breach Report released by data protection company Bitglass, 328 U.S. health care firms reported data breaches in 2016, up from 268.

This year, the following attacks occurred: (1) In February, Californian Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center paid cyber attackers $17,000 in Bitcoins to regain control of its systems; (2) a month later, Alvaro Hospital Medical Center in San Diego was attacked but refused to pay; (3) additionally, Merck and Pennsylvania’s Heritage Valley Health System were attacked; and (4) in July, Caro Community Hospital Medical Clinic and Quick Care (both located in Caro, Michigan) were attacked.

This past May, international headlines were made when one of the largest “ransomware” attacks on records aptly named “WannaCry,” “WCry” or “Wanna Decryptor” was transmitted via email targeting vulnerabilities in computer systems. During this attack, cyber attackers took over computers, encrypted information, then demanded payment of $300 of Bitcoin per machine to unlock the devices.