HIPAA compliance law, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act in long form, is one of the compliance standards the public and private healthcare companies need to address for building and maintaining public trust in telemedicine. During the COVID-19 pandemic, telemedicine has been the solution to withstand the excess influx to hospitals and health centers, avoiding unnecessary exposure of patients.
Our health is a very personal and private issue. Yet, in the past 12 months, according to the HIPAA, over 34 million patient records have been exposed to data breaches in the US healthcare ecosystem. Confidential health information, genetic data and financial details have all been stolen. The pandemic has also put the focus on the pharmaceutical industry and their security challenges to keep research and intellectual property safe as well as securing the supply chain.
Modern technology allows the easy collection and distribution of personally identifiable information — and concerns about the unintended distribution of that personal data have led to a wave of data privacy laws around the world. The U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is one such law, and imposes strict rules on how hospitals, healthcare businesses, and other “covered entities” handle personal health information (PHI).
Healthcare organizations still seem to think that blocking all access to unapproved cloud storage or cloud collaboration tools means that they’re preventing leakage of sensitive information. But as the old saying goes, “Data flows like water.” Eventually, it’s going to find the holes and escape. Even if a healthcare IT system has water-tight data controls, that’s not the only goal within the organization—and not even the most important one.
Healthcare providers collect, process and share citizens’ most highly sensitive personal data – from names, dates of birth and contact details, to medical and financial information. The loss of this data by healthcare organisations can cause significant emotional distress to patients if private medical conditions are disclosed, and also make them more vulnerable to identity theft, fraud and further cyberattacks.
The number of cybersecurity incidents reported within the healthcare industry has been steadily increasing since 2015 as the use of IoMT has become more widespread. With increasing numbers of IoMT devices being used for patient care, the attack surface among hospitals and doctors’ offices has grown dramatically as medical technology continues to expand.
COVID-19 has severely tested the limits of our healthcare systems, pushing many hospitals to the brink of manpower and technological collapse. In fact, the pandemic has demonstrated just how quickly public health can unravel once healthcare systems reach their maximum capacity. These pressures have hastened the development of telemedicine, pushing the once-distant goal to the centre of the agenda for healthcare institutions across the globe.
Five worthy reads is a regular column on five noteworthy items we’ve discovered while researching trending and timeless topics. In this edition, we’ll learn about the legacy between the healthcare industry and cyberattacks, the vulnerable points in the healthcare system, and how risks can be mitigated. Did you know that for 10th year in a row, the healthcare industry has seen the highest impact from cyberattacks of any industry?
