Identifying the most common cybersecurity issues beforehand can help you more than being informed. But these red flags can help you avoid them before they can hold a grip on you.
Today, the healthcare industry is a big market for cybercriminals. Once PHI or protected health information is stolen, it can be sold for hundreds to thousands of dollars in the black market. No wonder why the healthcare industry is a gold mine for malicious intents.
Although technology advancement enhances and levels up the services and processes in the industry, it also exposes them to more cyber risks.
Whether you are in the healthcare industry or are studying cybersecurity, identifying the underlying issues can help you not repeat the mistakes of anyone.
In this article, we will be reviewing some of the most common cybersecurity issues in the healthcare industry. Patching these loopholes beforehand can do more than preparation. But it can also save you from unnecessary financial and reputational burdens in the future.
Most Common Cybersecurity Issues in the Healthcare Industry
1. Budgeting Limitations
First of all, the healthcare industry spends less on cybersecurity. In fact, only 5% of their budget was spent on cybersecurity in 2019. While the federal budget raised theirs up to $15 billion in 2019 alone. This is in fact, more than 4% higher than their budget in 2018.
However, in recent years and months, healthcare is spending more on it already. From a short-sighted range of view, allocating a bigger budget on cybersecurity may appear not cost-effective. But actually, you are like saving up for insurance. It will return to you in the future, for sure.
2. Human Error & Insider Threats
Most of the incident reports in the healthcare industry are from human error. Specifically, from unaware and honest mistakes of employees.
For example, the 2019 DBIR states that the following are the most common causes of data breach incidents in the healthcare sector:
- Web application attacks
- Lost and stolen credentials
- Misuse of access privileges
3. Repeated ‘Classic’ Attacks
The ‘classic’ attacks in cybersecurity still continue to claim to be one of the most destructive. For example, consider the following causes of attacks. The Malwarebytes 2019 report states the following, for instance.
- Third-party vulnerabilities
- Social engineering through phishing emails, links, and attachments
4. No Executive Leadership
Above all, many healthcare sectors did not deploy dedicated executives to manage cybersecurity.
One of the most common reasons for this understaffing is the lack of qualified talents. Besides, understaffing in cybersecurity is not only experienced in the healthcare sector alone. In fact, around the globe, more than millions of unfilled cybersecurity jobs are reported.
How Training Helps
Risks and threats are inevitable. But employees and everyone in the industry, can, of course, do his part. Perhaps the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 or HIPAA should be included in training sessions.
Simple and basic awareness and training sessions can go a long way. Teach them how valuable data is. For example, educate employees on how to spot and deal with cyber threats. Also, implementing definite rules and protocols in data security can help.
