Hackers will continue to pummel the sector with targeted attacks.
Have you heard the news about the most recent Chicago, Illinois area hospital data breach? We’re referring to the article in the Chicago Tribune, By Lisa Schencker on December 31, 2019. “Personal information of nearly 13,000 people may have been exposed in Sinai Health System data breach” Click here to view the article.
After reading this article many questions came to mind. Who would hack a hospital system? Are cyber attacks on hospitals becoming more frequent? Could a foreign hacker be targeting hospitals to conduct cyber warfare? Could it be a disgruntled employee who maliciously wants to obtain patient electronic medical records (EMR) and target a particular patient?
It has been reported that 70% of hospital data breaches include sensitive demographic or financial information of that could lead to identity theft. The Sinai Health System data breach included 13,000 patients’ names, addresses, birth dates, Social Security numbers, health information or health insurance information were potentially exposed.
One could easily assume that if a hacker was armed with this information, they could sell patient electronic medical records and financial data to the highest bidder. The potential for patient harm is exponential.
Data Breach Incident Response
What happens next? Computer Forensic Experts are called to initiate a data breach response. Experts start with immediately stopping the breach, accessing the damage, notifying those affected, conducting a security audit. Forensic experts create a recovery plan to prepare for future attacks. Finally, Forensics experts train employees to protect the data and enforce strong passwords.
Computer Forensic Experts A.K.A. Cyber Security sleuths or electronic detectives are really excellent at detecting where and how the breach occurred and accessing the damage. In cases of litigation due to a data breach or medical malpractice, Computer Forensics Experts are hired by law firms to serve as expert witnesses to help win the litigation. In addition, many hospitals hire Computer Forensic Experts to assist in auditing their records to prove their side of the case.
Prepare a Data Breach Incident Response Plan
Looking forward to 2020. Cyber Forensic experts agree the entire sector needs to adjust its security approach to keep pace with hackers. The Department of Health and Services and many states may impose fines on those who are not following security guidelines. It’s vitally important to create a Data Breach Incident Response Plan.