by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 28, 2018 | Cybersecurity, HIPAA News
ICS-CERT has released a warning after identifying eight vulnerabilities in version 8 of Natus Xltek NeuroWorks software implemented in Natus Xltek EEG medical products. If the weaknesses are successfully exploited they could allow a hacker to crash a vulnerable device...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 26, 2018 | HIPAA News
After what is believed to have been inappropriate accessing of patient health records by staff members, Washington Health System has decided to suspend several staff members while the privacy breach is reviewed. While it has not been revealed how many staff members...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 22, 2018 | GDPR Advice
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 21, 2018 | HIPAA News
New guidance for HIPAA-covered bodies to streamline HIPAA authorizations for uses of protected health information for research purposes has been released by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights , as required by the 21st Century Cures...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 20, 2018 | Cybersecurity, HIPAA News
The results of a HIMSS survey has revealed that medical device security is a strategic focus for most healthcare groups, yet fewer than 50% of healthcare providers have an approved budget for addressing security weaknesses in medical devices. For the survey, HIMSS...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 20, 2018 | HIPAA News
A phishing attack has been experienced by the Florida Agency for Persons with Disabilities (FAPD), which provides support services for people with disabilities such as autism, cerebral palsy, spina bifida, and Downs syndrome. The phishing attack took place on April...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 19, 2018 | HIPAA News
A former member of staff at the Veteran Affairs Medical Center located in Long Beach, CA who illegally stole the protected health information (PHI) of over 1,000 patients has been given a three-year jail sentence. Albert Torres, 51, was working as a clerk in the Long...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 18, 2018 | HIPAA News
Two HIPAA-covered organizations are making their patients aware that some of their protected health information (PHI) has been stolen by unauthorized individuals in recent times. PHI Stolen from Staff Member of Christus Spohn Hospitals The protected health information...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 17, 2018 | GDPR Advice
by Daniel Lopez | Jun 15, 2018 | HIPAA Advice
The small distinction between HIPAA medical records retention and HIPAA record retention can lead to some confusion when discussing HIPAA retention requirements. This article seeks to explain what records need to be retained under HIPAA, and what other retention...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 15, 2018 | HIPAA News
HealthEquity Inc. has been hit by a phishing attack leading to the exposure of members’ protected health information. The data breach was restricted to one email account, although a review of the messages in the account showed a range of PHI was potentially stolen by...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 14, 2018 | HIPAA News
A staff member at Phoenix-based Terros Health was tricked by a phishing scam and mistakenly handed over login credentials to the hacker. That person accessed the employee’s email account and may have viewed or obtained a range of protected health information listed in...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 13, 2018 | HIPAA News
The results of a recent survey conducted by Black Book Research show that 90% of hospitals and 94% of physicians have implemented mobile technology and believe that it is helping to enhance patient safety and outcomes, . The survey was carried out on 770...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 12, 2018 | HIPAA News
3,700 plan members of Rise Wisconsin are being warned that some of their protected health information may have been obtained by unauthorized people during a recent ransomware attack. It is estimated that the ransomware was placed on on its IT systems around April 8,...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 11, 2018 | HIPAA News
A nurse who shared patient data with her new employer has been suspended for 12 months by the New York State Education Department, while her former employer has been fined $15,000 for the breach of Protected Health Information. In April 2015, Martha C. Smith-Lightfoot...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 11, 2018 | Cybersecurity
Towards the end of last week social media giant Facebook revealed it experienced a data privacy breach last week that placed 14 million users of the platform in danger. From May 18 and 27, a technical glitch meant that the privacy settings for new posts was...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 8, 2018 | HIPAA News
Aetna have launched fresh attempts to recover some of the expenses they incurred in the ongoing legal battles in relation to a 2017 privacy breach involving the exposure of patients’ sensitive health information. A new lawsuit has been submitted by the insurance...
by Daniel Lopez | Jun 8, 2018 | HIPAA Advice
HIPAA (The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) is an vital legislative Act that impacts the U.S. healthcare secor, but what is the purpose of HIPAA? Healthcare workers often complain about the limitations imposed by HIPAA – Are the advantages of the...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 7, 2018 | Cybersecurity, HIPAA News
An official advisory over weaknesses impacting certain Phillips IntelliVue Patient and Avalon Fetal monitors has been released by the Department of Homeland Security’s Industrial Control Systems Cyber Emergency Response Team (ICS-CERT). Three weaknesses have been...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 6, 2018 | HIPAA News
A new application programming interface (API) for developers that will allow them to develop health apps that include patients’ EHR data has been launched by Apple. Users who share their EHR data into the Apple Health Records app will be able to distribute the data...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 5, 2018 | HIPAA News
A former member of staff from Mosaic Life Care Medical Center in St. Joseph, MO has filed legal action over wrongful dismissal and retaliation for her taking measures to avoid a breach of the False Claims Act. Debra Conrad, aged 57, claims she was wrongfully sacked...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 5, 2018 | HIPAA News
In Colorado bill HB 1128 has been signed into law by Governor John Hickenlooper. This bill enhances security for consumer data in the state of Colorado. The bipartisan bill, sponsored by Reps. Cole Wist (R) and Jeff Bridges (D) and Sens. Kent Lambert (R) and Lois...
by Daniel Lopez | Jun 1, 2018 | HIPAA Advice
The Healthcare Insurance Portability and Accountability Act states that that an individual(s) within a Covered Entity or Business Associate must be assigned the duties of HIPAA Compliance Officer. The individual filling this role can be an existing employee or a new...
by Patrick Kennedy | Jun 1, 2018 | HIPAA News
A number of different data breaches and violations of HIPAA Rules have been discovered by Dignity Health in the past few weeks. One incident involved a staff member accessing the PHI of patients without official permission, a mistake occurred that allowed a business...
