How arrogant to comment that these hospital systems should have been secured by now, given that WannaCry has hit hospitals in the past couple of years. Shows a lack of understanding of the economics of security. I agree with the point made by others about not negotiating with terrorists. Outlawing payments would not prevent the attacks, though, the prisoner's dilemma will remain. I am not an economist, but as long as the value of the assets being rescued is greater than the value of the money handed over, the trade will occur. At some point, yes, the ransom will be too great, but the parties will continue to seek the path of least resistance.