Healthcare risk assessment tools are a crucial component of cybersecurity that ensures the safety of your patient data and critical systems in your healthcare practice.
15 percent of all cyber-attacks targeted the healthcare industry in 2020, with most of those threats being malware and ransomware attacks. However, due to technological advancement in the healthcare sector, emerging security threats are on the rise.
Whether your business is directly involved in healthcare or indirectly connected to the industry through trade, there’s a good chance you’ll need to comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA).
One of the most challenging aspects of compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) is understanding how to store sensitive data. This is partly because the US Department of Health and Human Safety (HHS) has not provided a specific set of HIPAA data storage requirements that companies need to follow.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced businesses to adapt to a new normal. Work from home mandates pushed some firms to become fully remote, while others had to shutter completely. Severely impacted healthcare providers were on the frontlines navigating the virus and re-configuring their workspaces, personnel, and patient relationships. Telemedicine has also been widely adopted and expanded during the pandemic.
Businesses within and adjacent to the healthcare industry must follow strenuous controls to safeguard the class of data known as “protected health information” (PHI). Per the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), de-identification is one central protection element. An innovative option available to businesses that need HIPAA compliance is an approach called “safe harbor.”
There are privacy and security concerns surrounding patient data for companies in the healthcare industry and third-parties operating adjacent to it. Critically, patient data must be processed, stored, and transmitted securely. To keep data secure, companies need to protect this information per the specifications laid out in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). The HIPAA Security Rule, in particular, comprises three primary components you’ll need to pay special attention to — but what are the three components of the HIPAA Security Rule?
It is easy to imagine the kind of challenges doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals face when fighting to keep us healthy. There is no need to add the extra pressure that comes with a potential cyberattack. Without a robust security architecture, your patients’ data is at risk of exposure, which could pose a severe privacy risk. But without proper staff training, the potential fallout can compound, which in the worst case could result in loss of life.
Cybersecurity threats in healthcare can cause dire financial and legal damage to organizations as hackers test the healthcare industry’s security and resilience.
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) exists to secure protected health information (PHI). Most companies that provide healthcare services and their strategic partners need to implement HIPAA controls to protect stakeholders from cybercrime threats. Want to know if your company is a HIPAA-covered entity? Keep reading to discover if you are and what HIPAA compliance entails.