Healthcare continues to be one of the most heavily targeted sectors for cybercriminals, according to SonicWall’s newly released 2026 Healthcare Protect Brief. The report, which draws on data from SonicWall’s global network of over one million security sensors, reveals that while cyberattack volumes have declined across most industries, healthcare has seen the smallest year-on-year reduction, underscoring the sector’s continued attractiveness to threat actors.
According to the findings, healthcare recorded only a 17% decline in attack volumes compared to reductions ranging from 17% to 56% across other industries. SonicWall attributes this trend to the critical nature of healthcare services, where operational downtime can directly impact patient care, making hospitals and healthcare providers more likely targets for ransomware and extortion campaigns.
The report identifies several areas of concern. Remote access infrastructure remains a significant vulnerability, with UltraVNC buffer overflow attacks generating 13.3 million exploitation attempts in just the first five months of 2026. The widespread use of remote desktop tools for telemedicine, distributed healthcare facilities, and third-party vendor access has expanded the attack surface, particularly when these tools are exposed to the internet without sufficient security controls.
Connected medical devices also continue to present cybersecurity challenges. SonicWall detected 243 unique attack signatures targeting Internet of Things (IoT) devices commonly used in healthcare environments. Many of these devices cannot be easily patched or equipped with endpoint security tools, increasing their exposure to threats. The report notes that vulnerabilities discovered several years ago, including those affecting connected surveillance systems, continue to generate significant attack activity, demonstrating the long lifespan of unaddressed security weaknesses.
Ransomware remains another major concern for the sector. SonicWall observed ten active ransomware families targeting healthcare organizations simultaneously during the first half of 2026—more than any other industry monitored in the study. The report suggests that cybercriminal groups view healthcare as a high-value target due to the operational pressure organizations face during disruptions, making them more likely to prioritize recovery efforts.
Additional findings show that malware activity in healthcare significantly exceeds that of other sectors. Malware hits per firewall reached more than 102,000 in the first half of 2026, nearly four times higher than the next most-targeted industry. Legacy vulnerabilities also continue to be exploited, with the Log4j vulnerability alone accounting for more than 11 million attack attempts despite patches having been available for several years.
To address these challenges, SonicWall advocates the adoption of Zero Trust security architectures that continuously verify users and devices before granting access to applications and resources. The company highlighted real-world deployments where healthcare organizations have incorporated Zero Trust principles into their infrastructure modernization efforts, helping reduce reliance on traditional VPN-based access models while strengthening security across distributed environments.
The report concludes that healthcare organizations must move beyond legacy security approaches and adopt more comprehensive, identity-driven security frameworks to protect increasingly complex digital environments and ensure resilience against evolving cyber threats.