From HIMSS: Results of the 2013 HIMSS Security Survey show that, despite progress toward hardened security and use of analytics, more work must be done to mitigate insider threat, such as the inappropriate access of data by employees. Although federal initiatives such as OCR audits, Meaningful Use and the HIPAA Omnibus Rule continue to encourage healthcare organizations…
Category: Health Data
Blue Shield of California notifies agents that their SSN was exposed
Blue Shield of California is notifying some agents that their Tax Identification Numbers – which are often the agents’ Social Security Numbers – were accidentally disclosed to some of the agents’ clients who attempted to pay their bills online. In a letter dated today, BSC writes that the problem with SSN exposure existed between December…
Nursing Homes Are Exposed to Hacker Attacks
Rachel King reports: Computer-security researchers have discovered on a website documents that could allow hackers easily to obtain electronic medical records and payment information from health-care providers. The documents—found by two cybersecurity firms on a site commonly used by hackers—detail the type of equipment used in computer networks, the Internet addresses for computers and other…
Breaches: Avoiding Legal Woes
Marianne Kolbasuk McGee interviewed David Navetta of InformationLawGroup on how covered entities can avoid legal woes related to breaches and the significance of a recent settlement between Kaiser and the California Attorney General’s Office. You can listen to the interview on HealthcareInfoSecurity.com. It’s important for covered entities to remember that although HIPAA may allow you…
Coalition complains to OCR about Dignity Health's use of patient information
Steven Slivka of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported on an OCR complaint last week. According to Slivka, the Nevada Health Services Coalition filed a complaint against Dignity Health, the owner of St. Rose Dominican Hospitals, alleging improper use of patient information. The caption for the accompanying photo, which appears to be misleading or just erroneous, says, “The…
Triple-S Salud fined $6.8M for HIPAA breach (updated)
Caribbean Business reports that Triple-S Salud has been fined nearly $6.8 million for violations of the federal Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act (HIPAA). Triple-S Salud is a licensee of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Puerto Rico and handles managed care for Medicare enrollees. The penalty handed down by the Puerto Rico government’s Medical Insurance Administration…