By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    headphones can create health problems
    The Harmful Health Effects of Using Headphones
    September 24, 2021
    Headache causes
    4 Causes Of Headache You Probably Didn’t Know About
    December 28, 2021
    follow these steps to recover from your injury
    What Steps Should You Take to Recover More Quickly from an Injury?
    April 12, 2022
    Latest News
    Health Benefits of Taking a Vacation to Reduce Your Stress
    September 27, 2023
    First Aid Training Enhancing Workplace Health and Safety
    September 25, 2023
    Beyond the Clinic: Medical Surveys Are a Roadmap to Passive Income for Doctors
    September 23, 2023
    5 Self-Care Habits to Help You Live an A+ Life
    September 21, 2023
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Health Care and Social Media… The Need For TACTICAL Guidance – Video
    October 27, 2011
    Obesity Explained
    December 2, 2011
    Does Disclosure Work?
    January 4, 2012
    Latest News
    Job Seekers with Disabilities Should at Health Insurance Benefits
    September 12, 2023
    Reasons That Drug Prices Are Rising to Unsustainable Levels
    September 12, 2023
    How Revenue Lifecycle Management Helps Healthcare Providers to Optimize Business Operations
    September 6, 2023
    The Hidden Benefits of Practice Exams for Medical Professionals
    September 6, 2023
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Understanding The Threat Posed By Healthcare Data Hackers
Share
Sign In
Notification Show More
Aa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Aa
Search
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > eHealth > Medical Records > Understanding The Threat Posed By Healthcare Data Hackers
eHealthMedical Records

Understanding The Threat Posed By Healthcare Data Hackers

ChloeBennet
Last updated: 2020/09/28 at 8:14 PM
ChloeBennet
Share
8 Min Read
SHARE

 

Contents
Health Data Is Easy To GetIt?s Personal Data On Nearly EveryoneIt?s EvolvingHealthcare Data Contains Other Data As WellSpecific Individual ExtortionCompany Data ExtortionConclusion

Data has become one of the major currencies in the modern world. It?s gathered in vast amounts and used by companies to make market predictions, adapt their own behavior and, primarily, discover what it is that people like, want and do. It?s also one of the largest motivations for the development of machine learning, where a computer which can handle the vast amounts of data flying around and spot patterns in minutes which would take mathematicians and statisticians months. Data is, therefore, valuable.

However, it is only in recent years that people have identified and responded to the potential threats that fast-moving data and its potential uses has on people. Legislation is only being introduced in the past couple of years to stop data abuse.

One of the most important fields for data usage is the medical field, where past treatments, prescriptions, and medical notes can all be crucial in helping a patient. Health records are as at risk as most other data types, the question becomes, why do hackers want health data? So here are a few steps for understanding why it is that hackers might be targeting your medical records for.

More Read

Electronic Health Records

Top Benefits of Electronic Health Records for Psychiatrists and Psychologists

How To Improve Patient Access Metrics
5 Ways Social Media Affects Teen Mental Health
6 Innovative Technologies Making Medical Diagnostics More Predictive
A Guide to Medical Billing Services for Small Practices

Health Data Is Easy To Get

Before getting into why this type of data is specifically of value to a data hacker it?s worth discussing the other side to why it is appealing. Data theft is not necessarily as complex as you think and could simply involve taking data out of a hospital. But, on both a physical and a cyber sense, healthcare data is very vulnerable.

Hospitals haven?t typically invested much in physical security, let alone cybersecurity. So, one of the biggest draws for data thieves is that there are huge amounts of data at their fingertips, since traditionally it?s been so poorly defended. That has been adjusted somewhat in recent years, since data theft and the potential benefits to hackers who can get their hands-on data have both been under the spotlight. Nevertheless, it?s worth knowing this.

It?s Personal Data On Nearly Everyone

Data, as I mentioned, is everywhere nowadays. But it is usually very specific, and it doesn?t paint all that much of a vivid picture of the person whose data it is. Most of the time, hackers don?t care about this: if they can sell it, that?s good enough. But health data has a unique appeal in that it is almost impossible to live in a first world country and not have files and files of information about your medical situation. So, there are almost limitless amounts of highly personal data existing for everyone everywhere, which can also help hackers target more efficiently.

It?s Evolving

One of the biggest motivations for hackers to target medical data is the ?potential? concept, which is that, even if it isn?t immediately clear at the time what use the medical records are of financially, there will likely come a time when they can make money off previous hacks. Cyber-theft is a relatively new concept and one which people learn more and more about every day, so it goes without saying that the criminals behind them are able to find more and more ways to cash in on their crimes. Perpetrating a healthcare data hack today could make them millions tomorrow.

Healthcare Data Contains Other Data As Well

If you really stop and think about what ?healthcare data? means, you begin to get a pretty good insight into its value. Healthcare data is deeply diverse in its contents, so cracking into a single individual?s data could lead a criminal to very valuable gains. Healthcare data will likely contain a combination of birth date, addresses, legal names, illness records, billing information even, in some instances, social security numbers. This is a wealth of data to be gathered in one strike and with endless possibilities of what could have been left ?on file? in a hospital, you can be sure that this particular type of data makes for a ripe target for cyber criminals looking to cash in on the value of data.

Specific Individual Extortion

This is somewhat more rare, but it certainly happens and when it does it can be very damaging. Much like the iCloud hacks of a few years ago, hackers are always likely to be on the lookout for sensitive data, personal information, photos etc. In particular, if this data relates to people who have a public profile, politicians, celebrities and the like, there can be a potential for holding the data ransom. This would mean letting that person know that if they aren?t able to pay the ransom that sensitive data will be released to the public. Healthcare data is so potentially sensitive that letting it go into the wrong hands could make your life really tricky.

Company Data Extortion

Particularly in America, where hospitals function like businesses, reputation is really important to a successful medical practice. A leak is terrible for a hospital?s PR, and a data leak of all their patients? records could potentially kill their business. This makes it very important for hospitals to secure their data. If a hacker gets all of these sensitive files, they may use a similar concept to above to make the hospital pay to avoid the embarrassment and damage of losing sensitive files. The hackers can always leak some of the files to prove they are a legitimate threat to the company?s clients. Not only is this a disaster on the individual client-based level, it can set a terrible precedent for other healthcare providers as well.

Conclusion

Cybercrime is, in general, something that people are only just getting a really strong handle on. Cybercrime relating to data is an even more uncertain field. One of the biggest threats in the end is actually the unknown: there simply is no limit to what evils could be perpetrated by criminals able to take whole medical record databanks. Hopefully, as time goes on, medical providers will invest energy into protecting against these sorts of vulnerabilities.

TAGGED: cybersecurity, healthcare cybersecurity, healthcare data, healthcare data hackers, healthcare hackers

Sign Up For Daily Newsletter

Be keep up! Get the latest breaking news delivered straight to your inbox.
By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.
ChloeBennet March 27, 2019
Share This Article
Facebook Twitter Copy Link Print
Share
By ChloeBennet
Chloe Bennet is a tech editor at Coursework Writing Service and OXEssays websites. She reviews latest edtech trends and blogs about them at AustralianHelp service.
Previous Article The Most Common Thyroid Problems And How To Treat Them
Next Article 4 Tips For Relieving Stress As A Caregiver To Your Elderly Parents

Stay Connected

1.5k Followers Like
4.5k Followers Follow
2.8k Followers Pin
136k Subscribers Subscribe

Latest News

Andropause hormonal decline
The Benefits of TRT for Andropause and Hormonal Decline
Wellness September 28, 2023
Cancer Prevention
The Importance of Lipoma Examination in Cancer Prevention
Cancer September 28, 2023
dental implant
Cost Analysis of Dental Implants in Australia
Dental health September 28, 2023
View,Of,Niagara,Falls,In,Autumn
Health Benefits of Taking a Vacation to Reduce Your Stress
Health September 27, 2023

You Might also Like

menopause and depression
Mental Health

How Menopause and Depression are Connected

September 13, 2023
healthcare cybersecurity
Technology

3 Pressing Healthcare Cyber Security Challenges and How to Address Them

May 9, 2023
cybersecurity options for hospitals
BusinessHospital Administration

Should Hospitals Use SASE or Traditional Network Security?

January 4, 2023
healthcare video marketing
MarketingSocial Media

How to Maintain a Successful YouTube Channel as a Healthcare Organization: Advantages of Video Marketing for your Medical Practice

November 9, 2022
Subscribe

Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!

Follow US
© 2008-2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?