Tech Journal The State of Healthcare Sector Security

The world of healthcare is evolving quickly as organizational leaders innovate to deliver more affordable, effective and intelligent healthcare options. An undeniably critical component in this evolution is the healthcare industry's increasing utilization of more advanced technologies.

Healthcare and technology are inextricably intertwined. Take the following examples, for instance:

• Data acquisition and analysis used to address social determinants of health
• The proliferation of telehealth options for a variety of health applications
• The dizzying array of Internet of Things (IoT) devices with applications spanning health monitoring, patient compliance, inventory management and more
• Artificial intelligence and machine learning used for predictive modeling and disease prevention

These only just scratch the surface.

Understanding the need for stronger healthcare security

It's often said that data is the lifeblood of a business; in the case of healthcare, this is especially true. Given the wealth of Protected Health Information (PHI) and sensitive data gathered, stored and used by healthcare applications, it comes as no surprise that healthcare is the top industry affected by cyberattacks and security breaches.

Healthcare is the number one industry affected by cyberattacks and security breaches.

IoT endpoints are open to attack, healthcare workers aren't always up to date on effective protocol, legacy systems continue running without patches or updates, and all the while, cyberattacks are becoming more sophisticated.

According to the Health Industry Cybersecurity Practices (HICP) guidelines, CISA 405(d) Task Group, of which Insight Cloud + Data Center Transformation is a member, the top five threats common to the healthcare industry are:

1. Email phishing attacks
2. Ransomware attacks
3. Loss or theft of equipment or data
4. Internal accidental or intentional data loss
5. Attacks against connected medical devices that may affect patient safety

In fact, healthcare is so much at risk that Cybersecurity Ventures predicts this industry will suffer 2-3x more cyberattacks in 2021 than the average predicted amount for other industries. Healthcare is the leading industry under attack from ransomware and estimates project the cost of ransomware to exceed $20 billion in 2021.

Finding solutions for healthcare's security challenges

It's clear that the healthcare sector has to evolve its approach to security to safeguard patient privacy and safety, to maintain compliance, and to protect the revenue and reputation of individual organizations.

The HICP provides guidance for organizations looking to manage threats and secure patients with technical guides encompassing the 10 most effective cybersecurity practices. These practices are designed to mitigate the top five common threats to healthcare:

• Email protection systems
• Endpoint protection systems
• Access management
• Data protection and loss prevention
• Asset management
• Network management
• Vulnerability management
• Incident response
• Medical device security
• Cybersecurity policies

While this list is helpful, moving from identifying a recommended approach to effectively implementing it is a complex endeavor many healthcare organizations simply aren't equipped to undertake.

A simpler way for healthcare organizations to improve security with minimal headache and maximum effectiveness is by trusting a healthcare security services partner like Insight.

Insight’s healthcare security services

Insight's security strategies for healthcare tightly align with the list above, providing a full suite of security services and technologies (hardware and software) administered by experts. Our teams are dedicated to helping organizations prevent and mitigate cybersecurity threats with a strong security posture that meets regulatory and compliance requirements.

Governance, risk and compliance services

These services ensure compliance with regulations and standards such as HIPAA/HITECH/HITRUST, NIST, ISO and PCI DSS. Healthcare security teams benefit from the knowledge and expertise of former healthcare Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) and industry experts to ensure compliance with the most rigorous industry standards.

Thorough assessments

Our Comprehensive Risk Assessment is based on HIPAA/HITECH requirements and includes robust underlying security controls from NIST and HITRUST. Our teams audit all security practices to identify weaknesses and build a prioritized roadmap for a stronger security environment.

Penetration testing and vulnerability scanning services

A broad range of testing options is available to help organizations uncover costly risks and vulnerabilities within the security environment.

On-premises and cloud services

From security consulting and design to implementation and operationalizing services, our teams can handle security needs both on premises and in the cloud.

Managed security services and operational support

With the right services that span tasks such as security reporting and analysis, security threat management and managed cloud, healthcare organizations can properly support their internal teams.

Security controls services

Our security experts are well-versed in delivering consultation, design, architecture, implementation and optimization of security measures specifically designed for highly regulated and mission-critical healthcare environments.

Virtual Chief Information Security Officer (vCISO)

A unique service provided by Insight, the vCISO program provides executive-level strategic consulting, leadership and guidance, as well as tactical and strategic security program planning, delivered by a healthcare-experienced CISO.

Proactive and reactive Incident Response (IR) services

Incident response services cover pre- and post-incident services, as well as remediation support for dealing with the repercussions of an active threat or ongoing incident. Services include tabletop exercises, IR plan development and an IR retainer service that ensures immediate, effective support in case of an incident.

Expert support for healthcare security

Today's healthcare leaders are experiencing a major shift in the way healthcare is conceived, perceived and delivered. Healthcare experts are often reliant on other players to protect their practices and patients from cybersecurity threats. The best recipe for success is to trust experts in the field of healthcare security — like those delivering Insight's solutions for healthcare security.

Let us help you modernize and transform.
Learn more about security solutions offered by Insight Cloud + Data Center Transformation.

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