While fraud prevention is an important aspect of any industry, it is especially important for businesses that deal with personal records.
Things like hospital records, medical information and student records contain very private data that requires specialized security measures. If fraud prevention slips through the cracks, businesses run the risk of lawsuits, fines and a variety of other legal repercussions. Just how serious are the repercussions when it comes to personal data? Advocate Health Care Network was recently forced to pay $5.55 million to the United States Health and Human Services Department as part of a settlement stemming from digital breaches that were caused by the company’s failure to comply with HIPPA laws.
Digital records are particularly vulnerable to fraud. They are popular targets for hackers because they are easy to obtain and have lucrative results.
How to Keep Data Protected
Enterprises that handle personal records must ensure that they are in full compliance with HIPAA regulations and other requirements. Each enterprise is responsible when breaches occur. If there are vulnerabilities in any facet of a security network, the enterprise that owns the network needs to evaluate new means of prevention and detection. Luckily, there are big data analytics platforms that enable enterprises to set up network security that can prevent, detect and cut off hacking attempts. Systems that utilize big data streaming allow businesses to detect anomalies that indicate someone may be attempting to access a system without authorization. Streaming platforms are capable of taking in large amounts of data and addressing them immediately. A big data platform can simultaneously analyze data in real time to spot signs of trouble. It relies on recognized baselines that have been established through system-wide historical data analysis and will trigger red flags when things occur outside of established baselines.
Â
Why Are Personal Records Easy to Hack?
Personal records can be easy to hack due to outdated systems in medical offices, clinics, insurance offices and hospitals. Offices routinely rely on insecure methods of transmitting patient information. When patient records are transferred and shared, it creates the perfect environment for hackers to obtain personal data.
A hacker can sell a full medical record for $1,000 or more using the right means. Right now, fraud accounts for more than $6 billion annually in the healthcare industry. Hackers can exploit vulnerabilities to access data sets that are set up to contain the personal information of customers, patients, employees, students and other groupings.
Personal data is meant to be kept personal. Businesses dealing with these types of information need to be equipped to handle data fraud head on.
