While there are many aspects to healthcare security, there are some key areas where vulnerabilities must be addressed. As the healthcare industry works rapidly to adopt electronic records, there are many changes taking place. Many of the changes will ultimately lead to a more secure environment that is better positioned to protect patient and employee data. As the transition is under way, however, many of these changes are exposing existing vulnerabilities. Create the most secure environment possible for healthcare institutions by reviewing three key items:
#1. Security, Mindshare and Training
Network Security is the responsibility of everyone within the organization, and whomever that organization is doing business with. There are many life threatening things happening within a healthcare organization that make it very easy to justify sending patient information via smartphone or using personal email when time is of the essence. Regardless of the reasoning or justifications, employees must understand the potential risks of these practices. On the flip side, these seemingly-inconsequential decisions are often born from a comfort zone that the end user has with their process. Therefore, the responsibility of the security professional is to provide end users with what they need in order to adopt the process quickly without stepping outside of their comfort zone.
#2. Healthcare Security in Mobility
It’s a reality and it’s here. So burying your head in the sand isn’t going to make it go away. Mobility is no longer the future, it is the present and we need to address it in healthcare security. There are 1.6 Million iPhone apps, and 700,000 Android apps on the market today. There are many ways to save and send files using mobile devices, which regularly interact with healthcare and other corporate networks. There are many approaches to this mobile security, each with its own set of advantages and disadvantages.
#3. Complexity
Complexity is the mother of all network security failures – and there is far too much of it going on within the industry. After 30 years in network security, I’ve come to the realization that simplicity can be achieved by addressing the 24 million+ connections entering your environment first. If you address this one aspect of security, everything else improves. Next-Gen Geo-IP Filtering solves the complexity problem by creating a granular layer that addresses the country, and companies within. The Geo-IP Filter has the ability to reduce the volume from 24 million connections per day and to approximately 10 Million – half of what you are seeing today!