Data Loss Analysis of Hospital Trust Records Loss

[security curmudgeon <jericho () attrition org>]

http://ezinearticles.com/?Data-Loss-Analysis-of-Hospital-Trust-Records-Loss&id=2381438
Data Loss Analysis of Hospital Trust Records Loss
By Penny Reyes

Summary: A UK based Hospitals Trust announced the loss of over 2,000 
orthotic patient records. The records were apparently stored on 3 laptops 
stolen on separate occasions, the first in March 2006, the second in 2007, 
and the third in February 2008.  It was only in April 2009 that the Trust 
apparently learned that they contained personally identifiable patient 
data and made the losses public in mid-May 2009.

Cause: This kind of loss is one of the most common, as individuals fail to 
take adequate care of the physical media that highly sensitive is stored 
upon.  An ever increasing number of private and public sector data losses 
are being publicized, partly due to disclosure requirements of an 
increasing number of US states and partly due to organizations wishing to 
contain negative PR, losses of this type however have been an issue since 
networks were opened and early workforce mobility drives saw systems users 
move to laptops, PDAs and smart phones.  The breach in question was a 
result of laptops stolen while in the possession of employees 
subcontracted to the Trust.

[..]
_______________________________________________
Dataloss Mailing List (dataloss () datalossdb org)

Get business, compliance, IT and security staff on the same page with
CREDANT Technologies: The Shortcut Guide to Understanding Data Protection
from Four Critical Perspectives. The eBook begins with considerations
important to executives and business leaders.
http://www.credant.com/campaigns/ebook-chpt-one-web.php