Medical Website Security

A breach in your medical website’s security can cause slow internet performance or even crash the device you're using. There is an unlimited amount of personal information floating around the digital world, constantly tempting hackers. Your medical website may be in serious risk if you don’t have any form of website or email security. Hackers often use scams, spam, and email attachments to take advantage of vulnerable websites and poor email security.

If your medical website is experiencing problems, a quick search for web security solutions may help you understand and resolve the issue. If your website lacks any security, you should immediately perform website maintenance and download firewall protection. Because the amount of circulating malware is so massive, with 390,000 new programs created each day, your site’s security must be evaluated on a regular basis. In the span of a minute, 232 computers are targeted by malware, while 416 websites are targeted by hackers. Of that number, 12 are successfully hacked.

A website has higher security if the site doesn’t contain much financial data; such as credit card and/or identity information. Medical websites are filled with private data: claim requests, protected health information, medical records and of course credit card information. Medical records are worth $60 on the black market opposed to credit card data worth $20. Because of the amount of sensitive information healthcare websites contain, they have a need for higher security. It is imperative that you have firewall protection to improve healthcare security and safeguard your site from any attack on sensitive information.

In 2014, 43% of all the major security breaches were targeted at the healthcare security industry. Of the total amount of information held by medical professionals and/or hospitals, 93% require protection due to privacy laws. This raises concern for the safety of personal information in hospital databases and medical websites. With only 57% of the information guarded by firewall protection, the other 43% is vulnerable to attacks. Medical IT service professionals are tasked with the need to consider both security and the necessity for instant access to data.

Healthcare organizations must have medical IT service professionals to conduct website maintenance and apply web security solutions on a regular basis. Automated tools are used to generate strong passwords, encrypt laptops and update patches. The internet is a lawless wasteland, and a metropolis of data and sensitive information. Even considering the tools and knowledge of internet security, an attack is still possible. Healthcare organizations must have plans in case their security is breached. A good security breach response plan involves documentation of events occurring up to and during the breach. Also, opening channels of communication with all employees revealing all information is imperative to dealing with a breach in a responsible manner. To ensure the functionality and safety of your site you must update the website’s security and monitor the activity of your site every day.