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Experts Call for Physicians to Secure Mobile Devices
The saturation levels are near a high point with regards to the amount of physicians as well as other medical staff that either own or make use of a mobile device such as a smartphone or tablet. This growth of mobile devices within the medical community is bringing up warning flags amongst the information security field. Just as these numbers of medical users has elevated, so has the amount of information breaches within the health care industry.
A report by Manhattan Research found that over 81% of physicians use a smartphone, this is an increase from 72% in 2010. As mentioned above, the rise in data breaches in the medical community has also increased. A study of data breaches in healthcare by the Ponemon Institute sites that the number of data breaches has risen 32% in the past year. As well, Ponemon found that in the past 2 years, 96% of all healthcare organizations surveyed said they had experienced at least one data breach.
Of course, having instant access to a patient’s digital healthcare records is both convenient and can also save a life in emergency situations. However, the use of mobile devices provides access to personal information that should be secured and protected, even by doctors and their medical staff. Even protection methods and technology like encryption can’t keep pace with the need for data protection. Another aspect is secure flash drives that can help as well.
The Ponemon report didn’t specify the number of healthcare breaches from mobile devices. But it stated, "Widespread use of mobile devices is putting patient data at risk." Larry Ponemon, founder of Ponemon Institute, commented on the Institutes first study of patient privacy and data security. He said, "This year it seems the issue of mobile devices has ratcheted up, because the adoption rate of smartphones that are really smart, or tablet computers, seems to have increased significantly."
It appears clear that mobile devices produce a information security danger in a minimum of two methods. Information can and does reside on a device and may be accessed by a hacker. The other way is the fact that the device itself if lost or unattended may be utilized to acquire access to information that's situated on a digital medical record method inside a healthcare organizations.
In either case cited above, remember that mobile devices are easier to lose or have stolen than a larger lap top computer. And if someone finds a lost device, or if it is stolen, they can easily gain access to valuable data if the phone is unsecured or lacks encryption.
A report by Manhattan Research found that over 81% of physicians use a smartphone, this is an increase from 72% in 2010. As mentioned above, the rise in data breaches in the medical community has also increased. A study of data breaches in healthcare by the Ponemon Institute sites that the number of data breaches has risen 32% in the past year. As well, Ponemon found that in the past 2 years, 96% of all healthcare organizations surveyed said they had experienced at least one data breach.
Of course, having instant access to a patient’s digital healthcare records is both convenient and can also save a life in emergency situations. However, the use of mobile devices provides access to personal information that should be secured and protected, even by doctors and their medical staff. Even protection methods and technology like encryption can’t keep pace with the need for data protection. Another aspect is secure flash drives that can help as well.
The Ponemon report didn’t specify the number of healthcare breaches from mobile devices. But it stated, "Widespread use of mobile devices is putting patient data at risk." Larry Ponemon, founder of Ponemon Institute, commented on the Institutes first study of patient privacy and data security. He said, "This year it seems the issue of mobile devices has ratcheted up, because the adoption rate of smartphones that are really smart, or tablet computers, seems to have increased significantly."
It appears clear that mobile devices produce a information security danger in a minimum of two methods. Information can and does reside on a device and may be accessed by a hacker. The other way is the fact that the device itself if lost or unattended may be utilized to acquire access to information that's situated on a digital medical record method inside a healthcare organizations.
In either case cited above, remember that mobile devices are easier to lose or have stolen than a larger lap top computer. And if someone finds a lost device, or if it is stolen, they can easily gain access to valuable data if the phone is unsecured or lacks encryption.
About the Author:
Oliver David writes articles for Lok-it.net and other publications on subjects like secure usb drive review.
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