Cybercriminals who demand a ransom in exchange for your encryption key can encrypt your electronic health information and render it useless. It is also possible to sell private information internationally. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) mandates that healthcare organizations protect the personal information of their patients and clients.

Healthcare organizations worldwide are stepping up their cybersecurity efforts, increasing their IT budgets, and hiring personnel with at least some cybersecurity training in response to the growing threats. These security professionals are responsible for ensuring that a significant amount of patient data is kept secure and is only accessible to authorized staff and affiliates and that the HIPAA compliance checklist by NordLayer is followed properly.

What Justifies HIPAA’s Need for Cybersecurity?

HIPAA helps to prevent the unauthorized disclosure of sensitive patient health information, including demographic information, test results, and information about a patient’s medical history and course of treatment.

The HIPAA Security Rule requires covered entities to maintain electronically protected health information (ePHI) protection and to ensure that this protection can protect the organization from any physical, administrative, or technical breach to safeguard a patient’s health records best. This is feasible with a strong cybersecurity strategy.

Cybersecurity Best Practices and HIPAA Compliance

It is essential to follow the suggested practices listed below to minimize problems or breaches involving personal data:

  • Defend IoMT Devices against Online Assaults

Devices connected to the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) present serious problems for some organizations. This is because they are more challenging to safeguard and monitor than standard wireless equipment. You can easily secure your network by adding or changing passwords.

Additionally, businesses might consider addressing network vulnerabilities, implementing detection systems to keep a closer eye on network activity, or segmenting the network to prevent unauthorized users from accessing data throughout the system. This can help healthcare personnel secure the network and avoid potential attacks, among other things.

  • Safeguard Patient Information while it is being Transported or Stored

Healthcare providers may store information, but it is all kept strictly confidential. Even though only authorized users can access this information, it is still very helpful to a hostile actor and could be easily accessible if not maintained. Healthcare organizations must safeguard patient data while it is being transported and stored to protect this information effectively.

Ensure data protection by offering superior security solutions for storing and transitioning data sources. Encrypting critical files before storing them on a device or even the storage device can improve data storage security. This also applies to data that is in transit. To better protect patient data and uphold HIPAA compliance, all practices should use encryption, a popular data security option.

  • Ensure the Security of Remote Services

Since millions of people still visit their healthcare providers remotely, corporate IT teams must guarantee the security of patient information. Healthcare providers must set up clear policies and be aware of how HIPAA regulations apply in these circumstances to use healthcare equipment remotely.

Your remote technology must be customized to the unique requirements of your long-term care patients and comply with HIPAA security and privacy requirements. Businesses can help secure remote responses by supplying employees with pre-configured devices that adhere to security standards and using encrypted virtual private networks (VPNs) to secure internet activity. Service providers can safely and securely connect the home and company networks using VPNs.

Best Practices to Improve Cybersecurity and HIPAA Compliance

These few strategies can help you maintain compliance while boosting your cybersecurity posture.

  • Network Access Limitations

It might seem easy to block access to a network. However, it is not as easy as it would seem because many businesses give outside access without even realizing it. Visitors’ devices shouldn’t be given network access until they have been inspected to prevent data loss. Use zero-trust security measures to confirm the identity of anything attempting to access your network’s resources.

  • Employ Firewalls

A great way to safeguard your company and keep HIPAA compliant is with firewalls. Firewalls provide a secure defense perimeter against initial attacks by restricting network traffic entering and leaving the network. Without firewall protection, virtually any data can be input by any user accessing your network and any software.

  • Plan for Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery

Be ready for anything, especially regarding your business’s integrity and confidential information. Businesses need to develop a disaster recovery and business continuity plan to ensure that staff members know what to do during a breach and are prepared to take swift action when necessary. This will facilitate a smooth transition for businesses that are recovering from assaults.

  • Create a Secure Environment

A security and knowledge culture that holds everyone responsible for security is essential to ensuring general security across all branches. A leadership strategy, employee education, and an examination of how to apply security best practices now and in the future could achieve this.

  • Safeguard Important Data

Thanks to collaborations between cloud storage providers and healthcare organizations, HIPAA-compliant backup solutions have become popular in recent years. Regardless of how you store your data, it is crucial to give staff training to ensure that staff members are quick on their feet, aware of how to access backup files, and capable of restoring data on the network.

Conclusion

Your information technology security plan should change as hacker techniques do. Working together with a company that is knowledgeable about HIPAA IT compliance is your best line of defense against these growing threats. Working with an IT service provider knowledgeable about HIPAA compliance may help your healthcare organization avoid breaking the law and incurring fines.

Work with any trustworthy managed IT services provider to ensure your company complies with HIPAA regulations. The HIPAA security risk assessment will identify compliance issues with your infrastructure and offer solutions.