Why Cybersecurity Breaches are on the Rise for Healthcare

[InfoSec News <alerts () infosecnews org>]

http://healthitsecurity.com/2014/11/04/cybersecurity-breaches-rise-healthcare/

By John Trobough
Health IT Security
November 4, 2014

The US healthcare industry has embraced its digital future — and that 
future is dependent on the Internet. The passage and implementation of 
recent legislation has mandated the adoption of connected healthcare 
technology as a way to reduce costs, increase patient privacy, and improve 
care collaboration and quality of healthcare services.

Healthcare providers are introducing Internet-enabled patient monitoring 
devices that transmit readings of vital signs, send alerts if readings are 
abnormal, enable communication between patients and their physicians or 
nurses and make patients’ private electronic health records available on 
their physicians’ tablets or smartphones wherever they are. But with all 
this data comes risks.

The Dangers of a Networked Healthcare System

As the healthcare system rapidly embraces digital information and Internet 
of Things (IoT) for connected care, the risk for cybersecurity breaches 
goes up. Other industries, including retail and financial services, have 
made headlines in recent years because of their vulnerabilities to cyber 
attackers, who are stealing credit card numbers and other private consumer 
information.

A recent BitSight Insights report found that healthcare organizations have 
both a high volume of security incidents and the slowest response time 
compared to other industries, with the average event duration being 5.3 
days. The healthcare industry also saw the largest percentage increase in 
cybersecurity incidents from April 2013 to March 2014.

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