Hundreds of computers in were infected with the Conficker worm not too long ago. What should surprise you is that these weren’t regular computers. This particular case included computers that were used in hospitals to aid medical equipment. Many people have been wondering how a computer virus could possible infect their heart monitors and MRI machines. This also raises the question of the type of security that is being used to protect hospital records and other private information.

Don’t panic, because this virus only affected a small number of computers, in comparison to what it could have done. Microsoft already patched the hole that the Conficker worm works with, but some computers were too old to receive the update. The computers without the patch were still used by the hospitals, but they did not have direct access to the internet.

Interestingly enough, the worm was able to work around the fact that they did not have internet. It can also travel through storage devices and computers that are networked together. Since many of the computers in a hospital are on the same network, the old computer models were infected. I often wonder why no one thought of this before.

Computer security has become increasingly difficult as hackers develop more advanced bugs. Although the security in hospitals has increased, we can only hope that a widespread attack never happens. Just think of the possible damage if computers in hospitals across the country were all attacked.

Of course, other companies have become aware of security problems in their systems. With some companies, workers can access information from the internet, and cause a number of problems from there. The best thing these companies can do is keep up with computer updates and virus protection programs. Without modern versions, your computer system is open to full attack, even from your own employees.

Source: CNET