By Jack Anderson
August 10, 2016
It is almost too easy for us bloggers to be given a bad guy called “The Dark Overlord”, but they stole 23,565 patient records in July and posted them on the dark net for sale. Patient health records are more valuable than credit card records on the dark net, with a price of about $100 per record. Hacking into healthcare databases is apparently childs play for the cybercriminals and since the average time of recognizing the hack is 2 to 6 years they have plenty of time for the getaway. No need for getaway cars or airplane.
Despite the urge to have fun with the names of the bad guys and their marketplace, this is serious business. Medical identity theft is more than a financial loss it can be a physical threat to the patient whose record is stolen. The buyer of the patient record will frequently change portions of the patient record in order to get drugs or services. This can result in the real patient getting the wrong drugs or services which can threaten their health.
The first line of defense for a healthcare organization is well trained staff. Opening the wrong email can lead to a chain of events culminating in a serious event for your patients. Having good policies and procedures is critical but training your staff on these policies and procedures is the critical link.
Does your staff understand the new social engineering used by cybercriminals; Pretexting, Diversion theft, Phishing, Spearphishing, Ransomware, Baiting, Quid Pro Quo, Tailgating, and many more?
The Dark Overlord wants your data. Learn how to protect it at www.compliancehelper.com