Change Healthcare Ransomware Attack May Cost Nearly $2.5 Billion

A February ransomware attack against UnitedHealth Group’s Change Healthcare platform used stolen credentials to access a Citrix portal lacking multi-factor authentication, enabling data theft and subsequent ransomware deployment; the incident disrupted pharmacy prescription processing nationwide, has cost the company nearly $2 billion (with total expected costs up to $2.45 billion), and may have compromised healthcare data for a substantial portion of Americans.