Sloppy Handling Of Patient Data Always A Danger

[InfoSec News <alerts () infosecnews org>]

http://www.informationweek.com/healthcare/security-and-privacy/sloppy-handling-of-patient-data-always-a-danger/d/d-id/899835

By Alex Kane Rudansky
InformationWeek
11/18/2013

The rules of the privacy game have changed and the stakes are higher than 
ever before when protecting patient information in transit.

With advancements in both consumer and healthcare technology, protection 
of patient information is critically important and equally challenging to 
achieve. Providers want to get information from point A to point B in the 
easiest way possible, even if it means using insecure email channels and 
violating the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

"If it's going to be secure, it's going to be harder to deal with," said 
Aaron Titus, chief privacy officer and counsel at Identity Finder, a 
sensitive data management firm. "Doctors and end-users will always find a 
way to do their jobs following the path of least resistance."

Most HIPAA violations occur accidentally, usually due to a lack of 
understanding of the law, which was enacted in 1996 and updated under the 
2009 Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act 
(HITECH).

[...]



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