Given the increased reliance on tech in general across healthcare practices to conduct patient care, hospitals cannot operate with compromised healthcare IT systems for long.
Due to the global coronavirus situation, hospitals and the healthcare IT systems they rely on have been under immense strain. Unfortunately, hackers and cybercriminals have been taking advantage of these circumstances to increase attacks on these healthcare IT systems.
Hospital digital networks hold tons of vital patient information, including personally identifying information and billing details. Given the increased reliance on tech in general across healthcare practices to conduct patient care, hospitals cannot operate with compromised healthcare IT systems for long. In many cases, they must comply with cybercriminal demands as not to risk putting their patients in jeopardy. Further, these attacks expose vulnerabilities in the hospital’s healthcare IT systems, which may cause issues with other governing organizations for noncompliance issues. So, what cybersecurity measures can organizations take to keep healthcare IT systems secure?
Recognize Threats
In order to combat the attacks on healthcare IT systems, it’s essential to know what threats look and how to respond when these threats are detected. Often, you may not spot the threat itself, but knowing when something seems out of place and following up on those clues can prevent further damages. Threats to healthcare IT systems don’t all have to start from a digital attack; a human insider breach can cause just as much havoc on the networking systems. Staff should be trained to recognize, then avoid phishing attacks, or report suspicious people on the premises of physical servers and computer entry points.
Employ Two-Factor Authentication
These days, both patients and service providers alike should only expect access to patient portals with two-factor authentication measures in place. Two or multi-factor authentication acts as another layer of security to prevent unauthorized access to a network. Should an attacker gain access to a network posing as a patient or physician, they can cause damage that could harm one to hundreds of other patient users.
Update Anti-Malware Software
Malware is dangerous depending on the type of malware a computer or network is exposed to. Ransomware can make data inaccessible until a ransom is paid to the attacker. Spyware can record keystrokes to steal usernames, passwords, credit card numbers, SSN, and more. Regardless of the potential type of threat, anti-malware and anti-virus software can always act as an additional defense against these concealed threats. Keeping these programs updated means hackers have less opportunity to subvert any weaknesses in the software.
Healthcare IT Services and Solutions from Audley Consulting Group
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