Healthcare and medical technology
Penetration Testing for Healthcare and MedTech Companies
Healthcare organizations run patient portals, EHR integrations, and connected devices on networks that were never designed to be attacked. Invadel tests all of it against the HIPAA Security Rule’s technical safeguards at a fixed price, with a free retest and risk analysis evidence.
The stakes
Why healthcare gets tested differently
Patient records are valuable because they are complete: identity, insurance, and clinical history in one place. Attackers reach them through a patient portal that lets one patient view another’s results, or a vendor VPN account that was never removed. A flat clinical network then lets one infected workstation reach the imaging servers. Ransomware operators favor healthcare because downtime is measured in canceled procedures.
The HIPAA Security Rule requires a risk analysis and a periodic technical evaluation of your safeguards, and a penetration test is the accepted way to evidence both. Hospitals and payers now write testing requirements into business associate agreements. Device makers face FDA premarket cybersecurity expectations. In New York, the SHIELD Act adds its own reasonable safeguards requirement for any company holding residents’ private information.
Generic testing stops at the web application. Healthcare exposure runs through HL7 and FHIR interfaces, clinical systems that cannot be rebooted, and devices with firmware nobody patches. A tester who does not know which systems are life-supporting cannot test them safely. One who has never seen a patient portal will miss the authorization flaw between two patient records that matters most.
What we test
The systems attackers go after first
Patient portals and telehealth apps
Web and mobile applications where patients view results, message clinicians, and pay bills, tested for authorization flaws between patient records and account takeover through recovery flows.
EHR integrations and clinical APIs
HL7, FHIR, and vendor interfaces that move records between systems, tested for authentication gaps, over-broad data returns, and partner integrations trusted more than they should be.
Clinical and corporate networks
The internal network connecting workstations, imaging, and clinical servers, tested from an assumed foothold for lateral movement, Active Directory escalation, and segmentation around critical systems.
Connected medical devices
Infusion pumps, monitors, and diagnostic equipment, tested at the firmware, interface, and network layers with findings mapped to FDA premarket guidance where a submission is planned.
Cloud-hosted health tech platforms
The AWS, Azure, or GCP environments where health tech vendors store ePHI, tested for IAM escalation, exposed storage, and the reach of one compromised service account.
Staff and the help desk
Phishing and pretexting campaigns against clinical and administrative staff, including password reset requests to the help desk, the usual first step in a healthcare intrusion.
Compliance
The frameworks that usually apply
- HIPAA
Findings mapped to the Security Rule’s technical safeguards, as evidence for the risk analysis and the periodic technical evaluation it requires.
- NY hospital rule (10 NYCRR 405.46)
Annual penetration testing by a qualified internal or external party, plus vulnerability scanning, required of New York general hospitals since October 2, 2025.
- HITRUST
Testing scoped to your e1, i1, or r2 assessment boundary for health tech vendors whose health system customers ask for HITRUST, reported for the External Assessor.
- SOC 2
The penetration test health tech vendors need for the audit that hospital and payer customers ask about alongside the business associate agreement.
- PCI DSS
Requirement 11.4 testing for patient billing and payment systems that bring card data into the environment.
Services
What healthcare teams usually buy
- From $6,000
Internal Network Penetration Testing
Testing from an assumed foothold inside your network: Active Directory attack paths, lateral movement, and segmentation, from $6,000.
- From $5,200
Web Application Penetration Testing
Manual testing of your web application across the OWASP Top 10, business logic, and all user roles, with a free retest included, from $5,200.
- From $4,000
API Penetration Testing Services
REST, GraphQL, and SOAP testing for broken authorization, token flaws, and data exposure, with every endpoint in scope, from $4,000.
- From $5,200
Hardware & IoT Penetration Testing
Embedded, medical, automotive, and OT device testing, from firmware and debug ports to radio and the companion mobile app, from $5,200.
- From $3,600
Phishing Simulation & Social Engineering Testing
Phishing and social engineering campaigns that measure real-world human risk, with click and credential metrics by department, from $3,600.
How it runs
Typical engagements
Illustrative scopes for this industry, written to show what a test covers and what you walk away with.
They are not client stories; our anonymized engagements are on the case studies page.
Typical engagement
Regional hospital network before its annual risk analysis
A regional hospital network updating its HIPAA risk analysis wants technical evidence rather than a policy review. We run an internal test from a standard user workstation, escalate through Active Directory, and document which clinical systems a compromised account could reach. The external test covers the patient portal and remote access gateway. The compliance officer receives findings mapped to the Security Rule’s technical safeguards, a remediation plan, and retest results for the risk analysis file.
Typical engagement
Telehealth startup answering a health system’s BAA
A telehealth startup signing its first health system customer is asked for third-party testing in the business associate agreement. We test the patient and clinician web apps, the mobile app on iOS and Android, and the FHIR integration that pulls records from the customer’s EHR. An authorization flaw between clinician accounts is fixed and retested within the engagement. The startup hands over the executive report and attestation letter, and the agreement is signed.
Typical engagement
Device manufacturer preparing an FDA premarket submission
A medical device manufacturer preparing a premarket submission needs cybersecurity testing evidence for a connected monitoring device. We extract and analyze the firmware, test the debug interfaces and Bluetooth pairing, and assess the companion app and cloud API that receive patient data. Findings are mapped to the FDA premarket cybersecurity guidance and delivered with hardening recommendations the engineering team can act on before the design freezes.
FAQ
What healthcare buyers ask
01Does HIPAA require a penetration test?
The Security Rule does not name a method. It requires a risk analysis and a periodic technical evaluation of your safeguards, and a penetration test is the most widely accepted way to evidence both. We map every finding to the HIPAA Security Rule technical safeguards so the report drops into your risk analysis. Our healthcare penetration testing guide covers the requirement in detail. If you are shortlisting firms, our list of the best healthcare penetration testing companies compares them on healthcare focus, HITRUST work, and medical device testing.
02Do New York hospitals have to run a penetration test?
Yes. Unlike the HIPAA Security Rule, New York’s hospital cybersecurity regulation, 10 NYCRR 405.46, names the test outright. Every general hospital licensed under article 28 of the Public Health Law must have its information systems penetration tested by a qualified internal or external party at least once a year, and must scan or review them for publicly known vulnerabilities. The rule has been fully enforceable since October 2, 2025. Our page on New York hospital cybersecurity regulations covers the rest of it, including the 72-hour incident report.
03Can you test clinical systems without disrupting patient care?
Yes, and it is the first thing we plan. Clinical systems, medical devices, and anything life-supporting are identified during scoping and handled under written rules. No denial-of-service techniques, no destructive payloads, agreed testing windows, and a clinical contact who can pause testing at any time. Most device testing happens on bench units rather than equipment in use. For clinics and offices in the New York metro, on-site wireless penetration testing from $3,800 checks whether the guest Wi-Fi can reach clinical systems.
04We are a business associate, not a provider. What scope do we need?
The product and infrastructure that touch your customers’ ePHI: usually the web application, its APIs, and the cloud environment behind them. Business associates answer to the Security Rule directly, and our HIPAA compliance checklist lists each safeguard and the evidence to keep. Internal network testing matters less for a fully cloud-based vendor. The report is written to satisfy the customer’s security review and BAA language as well as your own program. If a customer also asks for HITRUST, the same test can be scoped to your assessment boundary: see HITRUST penetration testing.
05How much does healthcare penetration testing cost?
Internal network testing starts at $6,000, web application testing at $5,200, API testing at $4,000, and hardware testing at $5,200 for a single device. Every price is fixed in writing before work starts and includes a free retest. A hospital engagement usually combines internal and external testing, and an Active Directory security assessment from $6,000 maps every path from one staff account to Domain Admin. A health tech vendor usually starts with the application.
06Do you test medical devices for FDA submissions?
Yes. We test at the firmware, debug interface, wireless, and companion app layers. Findings are mapped to the FDA premarket cybersecurity guidance, so the report supports the submission rather than sitting beside it. Pre-production units and engineering samples are the cheapest point to fix a design flaw, and we test them regularly. Our medical device penetration testing guide covers what the premarket guidance expects and how results go into the submission.
07Do you test health systems outside Manhattan?
Yes, at the same fixed prices. External, application, and cloud testing run remotely, and internal tests run through a small device we ship, so distance does not change the scope. We come on site for health systems on Long Island and hospital networks in Queens. Health systems in Philadelphia and Boston hospitals and biotech are served remotely, with on-site work by arrangement.
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