While data breaches show no signs of slowing, there’s a new trend in who is being targeted. While retailers like Home Depot grabbed headlines last year, hackers are shifting their focus to healthcare in 2015. Healthcare accounted for over 42 percent of data breaches last year and the number continues to grow. Leading the way as cautionary tales in this new era of hacking are healthcare firms Anthem and Premara.
Reviewing the Notorious Breaches
Anthem is the second-largest healthcare provider in the U.S. and the recent attack was commensurate with its size. With as many as 80 million Anthem customers were victims of the breach, this is now the largest data breach in history and was a great surprise to IT support specialists throughout the nation. While no medical information was stolen, clients’ social security numbers, income information, birth dates, and other identifying data were taken.
What the Premara Blue Cross breach lacked in size compared to Anthem – “only” 11 million customers’ data was compromised – it made up for in the stunning amount of time the hack went undetected. The breach dated back to early 2014 but was not discovered until January 2015. Financial and medical records were taken, though the FBI says there’s no evidence the stolen information has been used yet.
Protecting Your Business
With healthcare data breaches are expected to make up half of all hacks this year, what are healthcare companies and other businesses concerned with data loss to do? The first step is to come up with a post-breach action plan. This must include a communication plan for stakeholders and customers, a detailed list of contacts, including a vetted IT services firm who can provide post-breach support and forensic help, and a step-by-step explanation of the post-breach process.
Another way to avoid a breach is to formulate a data loss prevention process for internal associates. This plan must outline procedures for safeguarding systems, from laptops to smartphones, from the desktop to the server room. Breaches aren’t often the result of a focused hack on the data center. Rather, they’re crimes of opportunity, such as the wrong person getting their hands on a laptop and the employee being afraid to report the theft. Data loss prevention is everyone’s responsibility, not just the IT staff, and companies need to come up with a plan to make employees aware and keep them vigilant.
Schedule a Free Consultation Today
If you’re interested in learning how to tailor a plan to protect your business against cyber crime, call (760) 650-3300 and schedule a free consultation with the IT support and consulting experts at Syndeo Communications in San Diego.