Cyber Criminals Are Targeting Your Biomedical Waste Information!
While much information is known about criminals stealing credit card information, attention is now turning towards criminals targeting illegal access to biomedical waste information. The Sixth Annual Benchmark Study on Privacy & Security of Healthcare Data, published in 2016, reported “Nearly 90 percent of healthcare organizations represented in this study had a data breach in the past two years, and nearly half, or 45 percent, had more than five data breaches in the same time period.”
This study estimates that half of these breaches are due to criminal access, and the other half are due to internal mistakes. In total, these breaches last year cost the healthcare industry a massive $6.2 billion!
When it comes to cyber security breaches over the past eight years, more than 1,100 cyber security breaches compromised no less than a third of the US population’s health data… and experts warn that this is expected to only get worse.
What Are They Looking For?
If you’re wondering what would inspire someone to attempt to break into the datasets of healthcare providers in order to gain access to biomedical waste information, consider the criminal opportunities that could exist for someone in possession of your:
- Financial data
- Names and next of kin
- Birth dates
- Insurance policy numbers
- Diagnosis codes
- Billing information
- And more!
With such information, someone could successfully initiate identity theft, increase or maintain their connection to addictive substances, file false insurance claims, and any number of other crimes. It is for this reason, that healthcare data has become 10 times more desirable on the black market than simple credit card data alone!
How HIPAA Helps
The healthcare industry maintains a constant virtual treasure trove of financially lucrative personal data known as PHI – Protected Health Information. PHI includes medical information contained in patient files, along with any notes, documents and treatment records, lab and insurance reports, billing and coding information, labels on sharps or medical waste containers… anything that could disclose any information about a patient’s relationship with a medical practitioner could provide a cybercriminal with a dangerous amount of data.
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was established as a United States law intended to provide privacy standards that would protect patients’ medical records and other health information given to health plans, doctors, hospitals and other health care providers.
HIPAA requires that these health care providers conduct and document the completion of a comprehensive risk analysis to determine the vulnerability of their patients’ electronic PHI to loss or theft.
In addition, HIPAA guidelines instruct that review policies and procedures be in place in the event PHI is lost, stolen, or inappropriately disclosed. Employees must be trained on these protocols relating to PHI and HIPAA.
Bringing in ‘Contracted Muscle’
Even with the stringent demands of HIPPA regulations, the healthcare industry as a whole is still frightfully behind the curve when it comes to protecting biomedical waste information. In fact, surveys show that half of all healthcare organizations and business associates have little or no confidence that they have the ability to even detect data loss or theft after it has already happened!
Without having the adequate internal budget or know-how, many healthcare organizations simply lack the resources, processes and technologies to adequately protect healthcare data and biomedical waste information.
This is why another piece of the HIPAA mandate allows for partnerships to be established with reputable and conscientious service vendors. Contracting with a full-service company that is heavily insured and carries the proper licenses and permits creates an added layer of protection.
HIPAA also requires regular reviews of contracts with vendors and other “business associates” that have access to PHI. These reviews ensure the vendors have proper safeguards in place to secure patient PHI. So, the service you choose must be able to guarantee you 100% compliance with all state and federal regulations.
SecureMed Solutions
SecureMed is your local one-stop solution to help protect your patients and your business against unauthorized access to biomedical waste information, PHI documents, medical waste, sharps and containers. Our goal is to offer answers for your organization that lower costs and manage risk.
To learn more about how SecureMed can serve you, request a FREE quote today!
