Stay updated with the latest healthcare cybersecurity trends, news, and tips to protect patient data and comply with medical industry security standards.
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Background for this topic.
Healthcare is the delivery of clinical care and related services through hospitals, clinics, laboratories, pharmacies, insurers, and connected medical devices. It depends on electronic health records (EHRs), patient identity systems, diagnostic and imaging platforms, medication and scheduling systems, and data exchanges between organizations. These environments hold sensitive health and payment information, while the availability and integrity of systems can affect treatment, diagnostics, and patient safety.
Security concerns include unauthorized access or disclosure of records, alteration of clinical data, and disruption of care through attacks on EHRs, connected devices, or third-party services. Defenses require risk-based access controls, strong authentication, network separation where appropriate, secure device and software maintenance, backups that support clinical continuity, and tested downtime and incident-response procedures. Vulnerability management must account for legacy systems and devices that cannot be patched quickly. Privacy and compliance obligations, such as HIPAA in the United States, shape how organizations collect, use, share, retain, and report health information.
Revisions to 42 CFR Part 2 that go into effect soon to better align federal regulations for the confidentiality of substance use disorder records with HIPAA require entities to adjust their compliance programs. But the changes aren't easy, said attorney David Holtzman, founder of HITprivacy LLC.
Artificial intelligence use in healthcare is only as safe and accurate as the governance and trust frameworks surrounding it, particularly in clinical environments where errors or hallucinations can directly impact patient care, said Dave Bailey, vice president at consultancy Clearwater.
As the compliance deadline quickly approaches for changes to align the federal rules for the confidentiality of substance use disorder records with HIPAA, entities that participate in so-called Part 2 programs still face critical unanswered questions, said attorney Aleksandra Vold of BakerHostetler.
As the compliance deadline quickly approaches for changes to align the federal rules for the confidentiality of substance use disorder records with HIPAA, entities that participate in so-called Part 2 programs still face critical unanswered questions, said attorney Aleksandra Vold of BakerHostetler.
Affected police officers squeezed mental health services, relocated over safety fears Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) employees who had their details exposed in a significant 2023 data breach will each receive £7,500 ($10,279) as part of a universal offer of compensation.…
Experts: Problems Are Frequent Weaknesses Across Healthcare Sector EntitiesSecurity weaknesses in web-facing apps used at a large U.S. hospital could leave the facility's IT systems and sensitive patient information vulnerable to cyberattacks, found federal auditors. Those same problems also haunt many other healthcare entities, experts said.
Class Action Stems From 2023 Ransomware Attack Affecting More Than 500,000Capital Health, which operates hospitals and other facilities in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, agreed to pay $4.5 million to settle consolidated class action litigation involving a 2023 LockBit ransomware and data theft attack affecting more than a 500,000 patients and employees.