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  • What Is HITECH?

    What Is HITECH?

    When asked about the Obama administration’s efforts to reform the American healthcare system, most people will think of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, also known as “Obamacare.” Many forget or fail to realize that a year prior to the ACA’s creation, Congress had already passed the largest healthcare reform measure in decades in the form of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH). 

    One of the reasons why HITECH’s addition went mostly unnoticed and unremarked is that it was a subsection of President Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Few realized that this stimulus package introduced sweeping changes to the healthcare industry that had far-ranging impacts on the relationship between patients and providers, especially pertaining to healthcare provider treatment of private health information. 

    Do you want to know what is HITECH in healthcare and how it protects your private information? Read on to find out. 

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  • How to Make Your Website GDPR Compliant: A Step By Step Guide

    How to Make Your Website GDPR Compliant: A Step By Step Guide

    A website is like the cover of a book. The first thing a customer searches for is a company homepage and, like a book, if it is eye-catching, it warrants further investigation. For this reason, many companies invest heavily in website development, seeking to make their site clean, easily navigable, and, above all, able to capture and retain the attention of potential customers.

     However, in the process of developing a stellar website, security can sometimes be overlooked, particularly when it comes to complying with new privacy, consent, and transparency standards. 

    Is your website compliant with General Data Protection Regulation Standards? Find out now with our GDPR website checklist.

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  • Cyber Security Resilience Framework: How to Get Started

    Cyber Security Resilience Framework: How to Get Started

    Cyberattacks and data breaches have now been putting organizations at risk. This is why data security has become the global goal of organizations because data is one of their most valuable assets. It is crucial to an organization to detect, prevent, and recover from cybercrimes — that is why cybersecurity resilience should be the best defense.

    In 2013, President Barack Obama signed an Executive Order requiring organizations to develop a cybersecurity resilience framework to reduce cyber attacks against critical infrastructures. According to the Executive Order, the cybersecurity resilience framework “shall include a set of standards, methodologies, procedures, and processes that align policy, business, and technological approaches to address cyber risks.”

    Therefore, an organization must develop a cybersecurity resilience framework to aid itself in identifying, assessing, and managing when cyber breaches occur.

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  • What Is Cyber Resilience and Why Is It Important?

    What Is Cyber Resilience and Why Is It Important?

    It’s hard to imagine life without information technology in this digital age. From business experiences such as selling and buying shares to personal encounters like posting details and photos on social media, information is disseminated incessantly around the cyberspace. It has given the society the chance to become more connected and economies more prosperous. However, just as every system comes with risks, the security of cyberspace information is crucial to every enterprise or organization.

    Risks like cybersecurity breach or cyberattacks can cause companies severe damages. These attacks may attempt to destroy, expose, or obtain unauthorized access to computer networks, personal computer devices, infrastructures, or computer information systems.

    According to a study conducted by the University of Portsmouth, 43% of businesses and 19% of charities represented in the study experienced cyberattacks in 2018. In the UK, more than 2 million businesses or local firms became victims of different forms of cybercrimes and caused damage to £29.1 billion.

    This alarming rate of cyberattacks is the reason why companies should be equipped to manage such risks. Moreover, these attacks could have been dealt with if those businesses have better cyber resilience.

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  • The Many Cyber Security Threats To The Financial Sector

    The Many Cyber Security Threats To The Financial Sector

    In today’s society, there are new cybersecurity threats to the financial sector every day. Find out the most common risks for financial institutions here.

    Cybersecurity threats pose a substantial risk to just about every company and individual all over the world. That may sound like hyperbole but according to USA Today, billions of people have been affected by cybersecurity attacks. Financial institutions are particularly at risk due to the massive amount of capital they oversee. Understanding the risks and how to protect yourself are vital in succeeding in the financial world.

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  • What Are the 3 HITRUST Implementation Levels?

    What Are the 3 HITRUST Implementation Levels?

    Healthcare is an industry intertwined with our everyday lives. The young and the old alike rely on doctors to keep them healthy and usually, in that pursuit, reveal personal details to their health practitioners. This means consumers put a lot of trust in healthcare companies. 

    But with technology taking over the mundane tasks of healthcare, threat actors target health institutions for that personal information. The Health Information Trust Alliance (HITRUST) is designed to verify privacy and security compliance combat healthcare fraud. In particular, there are three different levels associated with HITRUST controls. 

    Learn about each HITRUST level and why it’s important with our comprehensive guide. 

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  • Information Security vs. Cyber Security: Is There a Difference?

    Information Security vs. Cyber Security: Is There a Difference?

    Technology progresses rapidly, and new security tactics are developed with each innovation. Several years ago, the key term for businesses was “information security,” but today cybersecurity tends to garner more attention and research. However, both information and cybersecurity have their respective merits and their similarities.  As an organization, it’s critical that your private info is secured. Learn about the differences between information security vs cybersecurity here. 

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  • 5 Cyber Security Threats In The Cannabis Industry

    5 Cyber Security Threats In The Cannabis Industry

    The legal marijuana industry is expected to grow exponentially over the next few years. This is spurred not only by the legalization of recreational marijuana in many states in the US as well as in countries like Canada, but also the growing adoption of cannabis as a pharmaceutical product.

    According to the State of the Legal Cannabis Markets report from BDS Analytics and Arcview Market Research, legal pot sales will hit $40.6 billion in 2024. This represents a 24.5 percent growth over the period 2018 to 2024. 

    The burgeoning cannabis retail industry is, therefore, a prime target for cybercriminals who look to steal valuable and sensitive information ranging from credit card information, trade secrets, and personally identifiable information (PII). 

    Aside from the consumer information they store and manage, online cannabis retailers are being targeted because many of them have yet to incorporate cybersecurity practices.  Small to medium-sized online marijuana retailers are also highly vulnerable to cyberattacks because they normally don’t have the resources to hire an IT staff who can implement security measures to mitigate cybersecurity risks. 

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  • Network Security Best Practices: A Complete Checklist

    Network Security Best Practices: A Complete Checklist

    The workplace is no longer an environment with stacks of filing boxes or employee mailboxes. Instead, files now speed through the Internet and meetings are held via teleconference. The ease of communication and multi-device compatibility, although convenient, increases the network vulnerability of companies. Understanding how a network operates, the components involved, and common threats will help companies prevent and mitigate future cyber attacks.

    Is your online information secured? Read on to access our network security best practices checklist. 

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  • What Are The PCI DSS Compliance Regulations for the Cannabis Industry?

    What Are The PCI DSS Compliance Regulations for the Cannabis Industry?

    The legalization of recreational and medical marijuana in many states and countries around the world has made the global marijuana market one of the fastest-growing industries. According to a recent report by the Grand View Research, Inc., the global legal marijuana market will grow to $66.3 billion by 2025.

    Cannabis is being widely used as a pharmaceutical product. It is said to be effective in treating severe medical conditions like arthritis, cancer, and Parkinson’s disease. This has contributed to the increased demand for medicinal marijuana.

    Moreover, recreational marijuana or the use of cannabis without medical justification is being legalized in many states and countries. In the United States, 11 states and the District of Columbia have legalized the recreational use of cannabis among adults. Countries like Canada, Belize, Jamaica, Argentina, and the Netherlands have also decriminalized the use of marijuana.

    All these developments point to the expansion of the cannabis industry in the years to come. Marijuana dispensaries can maximize their growth potential by complying with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), an information security standard for payment processing. Cashless ATM or point of sale (POS) banking is considered a viable and important platform for marijuana dispensaries to grow their sales. With POS banking, online cannabis dispensaries can accept purchases from customers who use their credit and debit cards.

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