2 Minute Drill: How AI-Powered Scams Are Reshaping Healthcare Cybersecurity with Drex DeFord
Drex DeFord explores what he calls the "trust recession"—a era where deepfakes, AI-generated content, and sophisticated social engineering have made it nearly impossible to distinguish real from fake. From synthetic customer service agents to North Korean operatives using AI to pass job interviews at US health systems, the threat landscape has fundamentally shifted. DeFord shares practical strategies for healthcare professionals to protect themselves during the holiday season when cyber criminals are most active, including how to validate information, verify identities, and trust your instincts when something feels off.Remember, Stay a Little Paranoid X: This Week Health LinkedIn: This Week Health Donate: Alex’s Lemonade Stand: Foundation for Childhood Cancer
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Solution Showcase: Pro Security In Your Pocket With Will Houston, Preston Duren, and Spencer Bales
December 3, 2025: When Will Houston, Network Security Manager at MDI Hospital, received security alerts at 5 AM on a holiday, he faced every healthcare leader's nightmare. But this story gets personal: among the 32,000 breach notifications he later sent were letters to his wife and two children. Join as Will sits down with Fortified Health Security’s Spencer Bales, VP of Product, and Preston Duren, VP of Threat Services, to explore how a small hospital in Bar Harbor, Maine, shut down 170 compromised accounts before breakfast, managed a crisis spanning weeks, and learned why healthcare-focused cybersecurity partnerships aren't just about technology—they're about protecting real people in your community.Key Points:04:45 Will’s Cyber Journey and the terrible summer13:24 Fortified's Central Command Platform16:20 The SOS Button and Work-Life Balance20:36 Incident Response and Escalation IQ28:51 Healthcare Focus and Mission32:40 Advice for Small TeamsX: This Week HealthLinkedIn: This Week HealthDonate: Alex’s Lemonade Stand: Foundation for Childhood Cancer
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Newsday: The AI Staffing Dilemma - The Productivity Paradox with This Week Health
December 1, 2025: As AI tools rapidly transform healthcare IT workflows, leaders face an unexpected challenge: what happens when your team becomes dramatically more productive? Bill Russell, Drex DeFord, and Sarah Richardson explore the productivity paradox hitting healthcare organizations—when AI enables staff to accomplish in hours what once took weeks, do you need fewer people or different approaches? From closing open positions to managing "cozy" employees who've mastered automation, they debate real strategies for navigating this shift. Whether you're a process-driven leader or innovation-focused builder, this discussion reveals how AI is forcing healthcare IT to rethink staffing, workflow waste, and organizational culture before it's too late.Key Points:02:56 AI in the Workplace: Efficiency and Challenges17:15 Leadership Styles and AI Integration20:33 Approaching the AI Wave26:23 Balancing Leadership Styles32:11 End-of-Year Reflections and PredictionsX: This Week HealthLinkedIn: This Week HealthDonate: Alex’s Lemonade Stand: Foundation for Childhood Cancer
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2 Minute Drill: Insider Threats in Healthcare: Employee Recruitment Schemes with Drex DeFord
Drex examines the growing insider threat landscape in healthcare cybersecurity. The episode covers CrowdStrike's recent insider incident where screenshots were leaked to cybercriminals, new research showing 93% of organizations struggle to detect insider threats, and the Geisinger Health/Nuance $5 million settlement over improper data access. Drex also reveals how ransomware groups like Medusa are directly recruiting healthcare employees with financial incentives, highlighting that insider threats aren't just malicious employees—they're also your people being actively targeted through phishing and recruitment offers.Remember, Stay a Little Paranoid X: This Week Health LinkedIn: This Week Health Donate: Alex’s Lemonade Stand: Foundation for Childhood Cancer
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UnHack (the Podcast): Breaking Down Silos and Building Up Culture with Shawna Hofer
November 25, 2025: What if cybersecurity awareness training could be fun, like mixing bratwurst and flu shots? Shawna Hofer, CISO at St. Luke's Health System, shares how her team transformed security culture by meeting staff where they are—literally. From creating engaging one-minute videos featuring everyday healthcare workers to establishing a groundbreaking IT and cyber resiliency team that breaks down traditional silos, Shawna reveals why the best healthcare CISOs are expert translators and relationship builders. She also tackles the tough questions around AI governance, operational resilience in the wake of major industry incidents, and why cyber preparedness must extend beyond hospital walls to protect entire communities. Discover how collaboration and creativity are reshaping healthcare cybersecurity from the inside out.Key Points:03:28 Building a Cybersecurity Culture08:00 Operational Resilience and Incident Response15:58 AI Governance20:55 Promoting Diversity in Cybersecurity25:27 The Role of a Healthcare CISOX: This Week HealthLinkedIn: This Week HealthDonate: Alex’s Lemonade Stand: Foundation for Childhood Cancer
Cyber-safety is patient-safety. On “UnHack,” Drex DeFord, veteran healthcare CIO and infused strategist, breaks down the biggest cybersecurity and risk challenges facing healthcare today. Drex and expert guests explore what happened, why it matters, and how to build real-world resilience. The show's a mostly plain-English, mostly non-technical discussion that dives into the people, process, and technology making healthcare more secure; and it's NOT just for cyber-professionals; it’s for everyone in a healthcare organization, because modern cybersecurity is a team-sport.
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