European hospital IT leaders in Germany, France, and Italy warn that the rapid implementation of the European Health Data Space (EHDS) is outpacing hospitals' cybersecurity defenses, increasing the risk of breaches amid rising cyberattacks and vulnerabilities.

The European Commission's January 2025 Action Plan aims to bolster hospital cybersecurity through initiatives like ENISA support centers, EU-wide early-warning systems, and rapid-response capacities, but vulnerabilities remain widespread.

Interoperability vendors and middleware systems are identified as the most vulnerable layer, with common issues including weak API credential management, inconsistent mutual-TLS, and infrequent key and token rotation.

Most hospitals lack dedicated incident response budgets or in-house Security Operations Centers, leaving them vulnerable as EHDS connectivity increases breach exposure, with 89% expecting more risks before implementing essential security controls.

Hospitals heavily rely on a small number of major clinical platforms for EHR and imaging, which face systemic risks due to patch management delays, complex upgrade dependencies, and insufficient vulnerability advisories.

Healthcare-specific cybersecurity providers like Thales, Atos Eviden, and Orange Cyberdefense are preferred, with 88% of hospitals favoring EU-based vendors due to GDPR compliance and concerns over data sovereignty.

Hospitals are preparing for the upcoming Cyber Resilience Act, which mandates lifecycle security requirements for digital health products, emphasizing the importance of maintaining Software Bill of Materials (SBOM) inventories, continuous API management, and severity-based patching.

About 60% of hospitals admit to delaying Electronic Health Record (EHR) patches, citing concerns over vendor response times and complex upgrade dependencies that hinder timely security updates.

A Black Book survey reveals that 74% of hospitals experienced at least one serious cyberattack in the past year, primarily through compromised credentials and data exchange APIs, with 83% citing weak API management as a major vulnerability.

Hospital leaders are calling for stricter patch SLAs, transparency in software vulnerabilities, coordinated vulnerability disclosures, and robust API security standards to mitigate risks and maintain clinical operations.

Key cybersecurity vulnerabilities include identity management and API security, worsened by slow patch cycles and lack of transparency, prompting hospitals to demand enforceable patch SLAs, SBOM and VEX transparency, and real-time vulnerability advisories.

Recent incidents across Europe, including breaches and ransomware attacks at hospitals in Germany, France, Ireland, and the UK, have caused operational disruptions and postponed care, highlighting the growing threat landscape.