How weak passwords and other failings led to catastrophic breach of Ascension

A US senator has urged the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Microsoft for cybersecurity negligence in the Ascension ransomware breach, which affected 140 hospitals and exposed 5.6 million patient records. The breach began with malware on a contractor's laptop, leading attackers to Ascension's Windows Active Directory, a critical network asset. The senator criticized Microsoft for supporting an outdated authentication protocol that allowed attackers to exploit vulnerabilities. The breach highlights the importance of strong security measures to prevent such catastrophic incidents.