What a Ransomware Attack on a Hospital Really Mean (Audio Issue Fixed)

What a Ransomware Attack on a Hospital Really Mean (Audio Issue Fixed)

Author: BKBT Productions October 22, 2025 Duration: 41:57
RE-ISSUE: This recording corrects for an audio overlap problem in the previous version of this interview at the 28:00 mark. Zach Lewis, CIO/CISO at University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis, joins the show to talk about his experience with a ransomware attack by the LockBit group. Zach takes us beyond the technical recovery into territory most people don't talk about: the gut-punch moment of finding the ransom note and the months of running on pure adrenaline while keeping his team from cracking under pressure. Key takeaways from our conversation: The human toll matters. When hospital systems go down, it's not just inconvenient. People can't get medications, emergency rooms have to reroute patients, and lives are at stake. This is the cyber war nobody wants to acknowledge. Attribution is nearly impossible. Even when you know who attacked you, there's rarely closure for victims. Leading through crisis. Zach shares how he kept his team together during months of remediation by staying calm on the outside, and knowing which team members could handle the pressure and which ones needed to stick to routine work. Sometimes the best leadership is just being that steady presence when everything else is chaos. If you want to understand what really happens when ransomware strikes, this episode is required listening. Available wherever you get your podcasts. Zach's book "Locked Up" drops January 6th and is available for pre-order now: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1394357044 Mentioned: Cyber Attack Suspected in German Woman's Death [https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/18/world/europe/cyber-attack-germany-ransomeware-death.html?unlocked_article_code=1.uU8.Cf4H.LEjQ0lmlN_Wn&smid=url-share] Chase Cunningham and cyber war [https://www.forbes.com/sites/tonybradley/2025/10/16/midnight-in-the-war-room-and-the-unsung-heroes-of-cybersecurity/]

There’s a lot of noise in the world of technology talk, but Bare Knuckles and Brass Tacks cuts through it with a focus on the people behind the products and the societal currents shaping our digital landscape. Hosts George K and George A steer conversations that are less about specs and hype, and more about real-world consequences. You’ll hear them dig into topics like the messy rollout of new AI tools, the often-invisible backbone of digital infrastructure, and why communities adopt or reject certain technologies. This podcast regularly features guests from various fields who offer unvarnished opinions on what’s genuinely functional and what’s fundamentally flawed in our tech-saturated lives. The discussions move beyond simple commentary to challenge the standard narratives promoted by the tech industry, examining the cultural and social ripples of every new development. It’s a show for anyone who feels that technology coverage often misses the human element-the frustrations, the adaptations, and the ethical dilemmas. Tune in for a grounded, critical, and consistently engaging dialogue that connects the dots between code and culture. This production from BKBT Productions lives up to its name, getting down to the brass tacks of how technology is built and used, with a bare-knuckle honesty that’s increasingly rare.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Bare Knuckles and Brass Tacks
Podcast Episodes

«1...678910