Malware has ravaged the internet since the 1970s. Attackers are always coming up with new malware to use for attacks on just about anything. In this article, it talks about multiple cyber attacks that have targeted healthcare-related companies, hospitals, and healthcare organizations around the world. These attacks were ransomware attacks and most likely have threatened thousands of lives, even more so as we deal with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic (Berezow, 2020). Mitigation methods that are advised by the U.S. government are the simplest of methods: 

• Regularly update software
• Use secured internet connections
• Implement email filters
• Don’t click on suspicious links or files
• Don’t respond to shady emails like the Nigerian Prince scam. 

Coincidentally, the state of Washington reported that a Nigerian Prince fraud ring stole/scammed $650 million in COVID-19-related unemployment benefits (Harmsworth, 2020). 

Berezow, A., Ph.D. (2020, October 28). Cyberattacks as a Public Health Threat. Retrieved November 10, 2020, from https://www.acsh.org/news/2020/10/28/cyberattacks-public-health-threat-15113

Harmsworth, M. (2020, June 4). The Employment Security Department fraud tops $650 million and will grow higher. Retrieved November 10, 2020, from https://www.washingtonpolicy.org/publications/detail/the-employment-security-department-fraud-tops-650-million-and-will-grow-higher