In this first part of the third episode of Cyberdistillery, Giuditta and Andrea discuss with Maria Vittoria Zucca - a PhD candidate in the National Italian PhD program Cybersecurity, led by the IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca - about cybersecurity in the healthcare system, specifically the Italian one.

Treating the healthcare system as a “cyber-patient”, Maria Vittoria identifies the main symptoms of hospitals in the cybersecurity domain, that is to say, their principal vulnerabilities; for instance, the uncontrolled circulation of data, the technological backwardness, and the fragile cybersecurity culture in (Italian) hospitals, among many others.

Moreover, after identifying the symptoms, Maria Vittoria provides a “cyber-diagnosis” of the most dangerous cyber threats to the healthcare sector, pinpointing the primary targets of malicious cyber actors within healthcare systems, including data, infrastructure, and medical devices. She also touches on the risks associated with AI.

In the next episode, part 2, Giuditta, Andrea, and Maria Vittoria will address the other two crucial steps in the cyber-medical analysis of healthcare systems: treatment and prognosis.

Maria Vittoria’s publication referenced to in this episode: ZUCCA, M.V. (2025) Cyber(in)sicurezza in sanità: un ponte comunicativo tra medicina, informatica e diritto. BioLaw Journal - Rivista di BioDiritto, 1, pp. 291–303.

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Hosts: Andrea Bussini, Giuditta Fiori

Editor: Andrea Bussini