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The University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) has fallen victim to a cyber attack, with criminals hijacking the hospital’s software and causing the majority of its operations to shut down. The attack is thought to be a ransomware attack, where criminals infiltrate a network and encrypt all the data, essentially holding it ransom. It is unclear how long it will take for the UMMC to recover, but it’s highlighted the growing risk and cost of healthcare breaches, which industry data shows to be among the most expensive and disruptive nationwide.
A Cyberattack at UMMC Emphasizes the Growing Threat and Cost of Healthcare Breaches
The recent cyberattack at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) underscores the escalating cost and risk of healthcare breaches, which are considered among the most costly and disruptive nationwide, according to industry data.
The cyberattack at UMMC has majorly disrupted daily operations for patients as its system recovery is still uncertain. Internet criminals have hijacked the hospital’s software, rendering it virtually inoperative. The attackers targeted patient’s billing information and Social Security numbers, making the healthcare center a high-value target.
James Phipps from Be Cloud in Jackson reveals that it is not uncommon for hackers to target hospitals. The incident at UMMC is a ransomware attack, a situation where criminals compromise a computer, infiltrate the network, encrypt all data, and sometimes hold the data ransom. Phipps warns that recovering from such an attack could take UMMC a while.
Cyberattacks on healthcare providers are rising at an alarming rate. In 2025, hundreds of ransomware attacks and over 364 hacking incidents were reported, affecting millions of patient records. The financial and operational cost of these attacks can be significant, with the average cost of a healthcare data breach in the U.S. reaching approximately $10.22 million per incident. Downtime during outages can cost hospitals roughly $25,000 per minute, with large hospitals losing up to $3.2 million per hour of lost operations.
Besides the direct financial loss, cyberattacks can delay care delivery, interrupt scheduling, and disrupt pharmacy and billing systems, as seen at UMMC, where patient appointments have been canceled and MyChart remains offline. UMMC has not disclosed the financial impact of the current cyberattack or the expected recovery time.
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