Medical cybersecurity is continuing to improve the application of cybersecurity practices in the healthcare industry. By doing so, the industry is now providing better patient care services. Otherwise, lagging can cause unnecessary downtime in the long run.
So in this article, we will be discussing how you can improve medical cybersecurity and also the best practices of doing so.
How to Improve Medical Cybersecurity in Healthcare?
Healthcare is an industry that requires constant connectivity. This makes it a prime target for cyber-attacks. However, medical cybersecurity is continuously improving with the adaptation of new technologies. To remain effective in the industry, healthcare organizations must adhere to these best practices:
1. Utilize a Security Operations Center (SOC)
A Security Operations Center (SOC) refers to a command center that monitors and controls a network. It also performs threat detection and security incident response monitoring of the network.
The SOC is one of the most effective ways to improve medical cybersecurity in healthcare. You can take it as an early warning system. Because it allows you to monitor the network 24/7 through real-time monitoring, alerts, and logging.
With this, you can detect attacks or potential risks immediately and take necessary actions that will prevent the attack from succeeding or mitigate the damage if one has already occurred.
2. Implement Security Policies
Security policies are rules regarding security matters within an organization’s environment. The top management or security analysts are the ones who develop these. Thus, to utilize their understanding of how security works.
These policies are developed based on information gathered from ongoing assessments of the organization’s systems, vulnerabilities, and risks. The goal is to develop security policies that will protect your network from being exploited by cybercriminals who want to steal data or disrupt business operations.
There are three types of security policies that you can use to improve medical cybersecurity in healthcare:
a) Information Security Policies – Information security policies are to protect data at rest, data in transit, and data processing within your organization’s environment. These types of policies usually involve the use of encryption applications, antivirus software updates, employee training, etcetera.
b) Network Security Policies – Network security policies are for protecting your organization’s network infrastructure against attacks or other intrusions.
c) Physical Access Control Policies – Physical access control policies are for controlling access into your organization’s physical environment (buildings & property). They include rules about employees’ access badges, visitor check-in procedures, etcetera.
d) Incident Response Policies – Incident response policies are for handling incidents or security breaches within your organization’s environment. This involves rules regarding how to treat intruders who attempt to break inside your network (e.g., disconnecting their connection), monitoring their activities, and how to respond to data theft or data loss.
3. Educate Employees about Cybersecurity
Employee training is one of the most important components of medical cybersecurity. This is because employees are usually the weak link in your organization’s security chain. Perhaps they are the ones who has direct exposure to cybercriminals who want to steal company data or interrupt business operations.
So you need to train employees on the importance of cybersecurity. For example, about the different types of cyberattacks that criminals can use against your organization, and how to handle them if they happen. This will encourage them to follow the security policies that you have implemented in your environment, as well as ensure that they don’t become a source of damage for your organization.
4. Adhere to Best Practices Regarding Data Encryption
Data encryption refers to a process where data converts into another form that is unreadable by humans. But can be easily read by machines. The purpose is to ensure data protection from cybercriminals who want to steal it and use it for malicious purposes.
This process requires an encryption algorithm and a key. The encryption algorithm is used for converting the original data into its encrypted version and the key is used for decrypting it back into its original form after it has been read by the intended recipient.
Conclusion: Medical Cybersecurity Improvement
It is important to note that these practices are not meant to act on their own. Rather, they should be in conjunction with other security policies and technologies. This is to create an effective defense framework that will prevent cyber-attacks from affecting the healthcare industry.
