In the pharmaceutical industry, a cyber attack isn’t just a security breach.
It's an attack on the critical that supports patient care, clinical research, and the development of lifesaving treatments. Sensitive information held across laboratories, manufacturing sites, and healthcare partners forms the foundation of safe, effective treatment delivery.
This industry must view cybersecurity with major concern, as it is, in the most literal way, a matter of life and death.
And yet, the reality shows a different picture: cybersecurity experts state that the attack surface and, consequently, opportunities for hacker attacks have expanded significantly over the past decade.
Besides ethical implications, the financial aftermath of data breaches is also severe.
IMB’s 2024 Cost of a Data Breach report shares that companies in the pharmaceutical industry spend an average of $5.1 million per breach, a $288,000 increase from the numbers reported in 2023.
Our customer, a global pharmaceutical organization serving an estimate of over one billion people daily, understood the severity of the situation. Thus, they set out to cover one of their most critical vulnerabilities: one manufacturing site without removable media security, which led to over 10,000 endpoints left unprotected.
Since the facility was visited by thousands of people every day, solving the vulnerability was critical, as a single infected USB could bring down the entire network.
This is the story of how our collaboration reduced the risk of malware infiltrating via removable media, while meeting compliance regulations without compromising operational efficiency.
Searching for Security That Fits Operations, Compliance, and Integration
While our customer recognized the need to implement removable media security, they couldn’t just choose any solution. They faced a series of constraints, primarily related to the company's size, its role in the industry, and the nature of the technology itself.
Any security solution they would’ve chosen needed to meet very specific requirements:
Operational Continuity
The customer needed a solution which could integrate without disrupting daily workflows, especially in manufacturing, R&D labs, or clinical settings where equipment relies on removable media.
User Adoption and Training
Many of the organization’s employees and vendors were not tech-savvy.
The security solution implemented had to be intuitive enough so these people could be trained in the new process of scanning all removable media, without creating an opportunity for user error or adoption resistance.
Integration with Existing Infrastructure
The customer already has a vast and complex IT infrastructure. Integrating new technologies in existing security systems, Active Directory, and management consoles to ensure seamless operation and centralized reporting can be a complex technical undertaking.
Compliance und Regulierung
The healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors are heavily regulated, and any new security solution must adhere to strict data privacy and security regulations like the GDPR in the EU and other industry-specific standards, which can add layers of complexity and cost.
Managing Diverse Media Types
Our customer's operations use a wide variety of removable media, from standard USB drives to specialized medical or industrial equipment with proprietary interfaces.
They needed a solution capable of handling their media types without causing compatibility issues.
Securing Critical Healthcare Data with Proven Technology Solutions
With so many constraints and requirements to be mindful of, the customer was on the hunt for a solution which offered more than security. It had to be an intuitive, compliance-ready solution which could integrate seamlessly into their already complex infrastructure.
They found a partner which could meet and exceed these expectations on our platform.
MetaDefender Kiosk
MetaDefender Kiosk is a media scanning station that controls the flow of data into and out of an organization, supporting various media types, such as USB devices, CDs/DVDs, and SD cards. It also includes features like Active Directory authentication, data security policies, and secure drive wiping.
MetaDefender Endpoint
MetaDefender Endpoint Validation is deployed on Windows endpoints to validate whether files from removable media devices were first scanned and processed by MetaDefender Kiosk. This ensures that only validated files can be opened, copied, selected, and accessed by the endpoint.
MetaDefender Endpoint Validation also detects unauthorized files and blocks unscanned files from accessing critical environments.
My OPSWAT Central Management
My OPSWAT Central Management provides a unified gateway to OPSWAT's products and services. It aggregates data from all connected MetaDefender products, allowing for in-depth device usage and access reports.
All solutions deployed by our customer use OPSWAT’s Metascan Multiscanning technology. It detects over 99% of malware by using multiple leading anti-malware engines, combining signatures, heuristics, and machine learning to improve detection of known and unknown threats.
Cyber Defense for the Systems That Defend Health
The successful implementation of OPSWAT's products proved significantly beneficial for our customer.
Threats Stopped at the Entry Point
The most significant benefit of this collaboration is the massive risk reduction; malware, viruses, and other threats can’t enter the network via removable media.
The Kiosk acts as a "digital gatekeeper," ensuring that only sanitized files can access the internal network.
Demonstrated Compliance
Our products provide a clear audit trail of all files and devices, making it easier to demonstrate compliance with regulatory requirements and internal security policies regarding rules for removable media.
Reduced Operational Downtime
The Kiosk doesn’t impede the customer’s operations in any shape or form, and employees could easily integrate removable media scanning into their workflows.
Moreover, through a proactive approach to cybersecurity, threats are prevented before they can be executed. The company can avoid the costly and disruptive process of cleaning up malware outbreaks, ensuring business continuity.
Future Opportunities Already at the Horizon
Our collaboration proved so successful, that we are actively exploring ways to further protect our customer’s systems:
- Advanced Endpoint Protection: Deploying MetaDefender Endpoint on critical endpoints can create stronger "defense-in-depth" tactics for organizations, providing real-time protection and monitoring across the entire IT environment.
- Protecting Entry Points: With MetaDefender Kiosk, our customer can protect entry points and stop any malicious files before entering OT environments.
