"FDA, MITRE Publish Updated Medical Device Security Incident Response Playbook"
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and MITRE have published an updated version of their "Medical Device Cybersecurity Regional Incident Preparedness and Response Playbook," which provides actionable strategies and resources for healthcare organizations to respond to cyber incidents while ensuring medical device security. Since the playbook's first iteration in 2018, cyberattacks have continued to have a significant impact on the healthcare sector. Medical device security is still a top priority for healthcare organizations, and keeping those devices operational during a cyber incident is critical. The updated playbook includes a resource appendix to help healthcare organizations navigate the playbook's contents and identify key resources. Furthermore, the playbook emphasizes the importance of having a diverse team participate in incident response exercises, ranging from clinicians to Information Technology (IT) staff. The FDA and MITRE also aimed to improve the playbook's alignment with the Hospital Incident Command System (HICS) for dealing with complex incidents. The updated version also includes a "Playbook Quick Start Companion Guide" to help organizations in orienting themselves and identifying key priority areas. The playbook emphasized the importance of regional partner collaboration and trust, as well as creating a medical device asset inventory and conducting a Hazard Vulnerability Analysis (HVA). With healthcare-related cyber incidents growing in size and scope, having a strong, well-executed support infrastructure in place prior to a cyber event is critical to executing a rapid, comprehensive, and robust response. This article continues to discuss the updated version of the Medical Device Cybersecurity Regional Incident Preparedness and Response Playbook.