T Trust and technology have been at loggerheads for a long time. Users refuse to trust their data, especially their healthcare data with companies. This is compounded by the waves of breach of data privacy across the world. It is a data “gold rush” with the changing healthcare data and privacy regulations⁠—and several large enterprises have made their way into the fortunes by commoditizing customer data. Consumer data is unethically sold to entities that misuse data for uncertain reasons with ambiguous ethics—creating large volumes of personal healthcare data.

Data breach and Cybersecurity in Healthcare – a Top Concern

Cybersecurity and cyber-attacks are amongst the topmost concerns in the healthcare landscape. A staggering eighty-three percent of physicians are reported to have experienced cyber-attack, while 55 percent of them are “very concerned” about future cybersecurity threats. This mistrust has had a very deep impact on the adoption of new technology. U.S physicians also face several other consequences including a certain amount of downtime resulting from cyber-attack targeted at their practice. A Swiss study indicated that digital health interventions are dependent on trust more than anything else.

Consequences of Cyberattacks

Percentage of U.S Physicians that are most concerned about certain consequences of future Cyberattacks

To mitigate cybersecurity threats, the New Jersey Cybersecurity and Communications Integrations Cell (NJCCIC) recommends the following best practices.

Healthcare Cybersecurity Best Practices during COVID-19

• Reemphasize cybersecurity principles and security best practices to secure passwords, incident reporting, email and internet use
• Ensure that password settings meet complexity requirements and enforce strong passwords for systems and devices
• Enable multi-factor and multi-level authentication as operationally feasible
• Toughen systems by deactivating unessential ports, protocols and services, limiting functionalities to the most required
• Maintain software and hardware at vendor-supported security patch levels by testing patches extensively
• Establish a centrally-deployed anti-malware software at all checkpoints capable of supporting anti-malware
• Deploy principles of least privilege, limiting access to critical functions and minimum required users
• Establish network segmentation, disconnecting IoT devices from other systems and networks
• Enable continuous monitoring of networks, applications and systems for rapid detection of suspicious or anomalous behavior

The Way Forward

Government regulations, personal preferences, and control over their healthcare data will play a crucial role in earning trust with the users, paving the way for better technology adoption. We are at a critical phase in healthcare where we need to commit to high standards of healthcare data privacy, data transparency and data control. A key factor during and after COVID-19 is how the healthcare industry and regulators push through legislation and parameters faster that can help patients during this time.

There is a critical need to protect data privacy by illustrating compliance with healthcare data privacy law standards and enabling trust by increasing healthcare data transparency.

At SolvEdge, we strive to be at the forefront of building this trust following the prescribed regulations as well as using the latest technology to deliver the best results. Our physician-focused solutions are HIPAA compliant and follow strict guidelines to ensure that they meet the stringent standards of patient data privacy and protection. SolvEdge’s privacy protection concerns go beyond complying with data privacy policies to build more profound trust with end-users and consumers, helping them stay ahead of the competition.

Talk to us to find out how