Hospital records used to 'target ads on Twitter and Facebook' say privacy campaigners, in latest NHS data concerns

[InfoSec News <alerts () infosecnews org>]

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/hospital-records-used-to-target-ads-on-twitter-and-facebook-say-privacy-campaigners-in-latest-nhs-data-concerns-9166633.html

By CHARLIE COOPER
HEALTH REPORTER
independent.co.uk
03 March 2014

The security of NHS data was thrown into further doubt yesterday after it 
emerged anonymous patient information has been used by a marketing 
consultancy to advise clients on targeting their social media campaigns.

It comes amid growing concerns over plans to trawl patient records from 
every GP surgery in England, which were postponed last month after NHS 
chiefs admitted they had not done enough to inform and reassure the public 
about the scheme, known as care.data. MPs sought reassurances last week 
that the GP data, which could be accessed by researchers and approved 
private companies, would not be vulnerable to breaches of patient 
confidentiality.

In another blow to public confidence in the scheme, it was also reported 
yesterday that the entire hospital episodes statistics (HES) dataset has 
been uploaded to Google servers. A management consultancy firm called PA 
Consulting used Google tools to create interactive maps out of HES data, 
it emerged. The HSCIC said it had received assurances that no Google staff 
would be able to access the data, and the firm said that the data was 
"held securely".

Medconfidential, which campaigns for better security around medical 
records, said that they were also concerned that HES data had been 
released, in pseudonymised form, to a consultancy firm, Beacon Dodsworth, 
which uses a coded version of HES data to help its clients "establish 
trends and understand patterns allowing you to tailor you social marketing 
or media awareness campaigns." Its chairman, Geoff Beacon, told The 
Independent that the firm had "not been allowed near the raw data", which 
had been handled by a public sector health observatory.

[...]



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