How Proactive Efforts Improve Healthcare Cybersecurity

Following years of digital transformation, much of which spurred on by the pandemic, healthcare organizations find themselves in the position of having to safeguard applications and information spanning their health IT ecosystem. At the same time, bad actors have identified healthcare as an industry ripe for cyberattacks, with ransomware and malware attacks becoming more and more commonplace. For covered entities and business associates to secure and protect health data systems and sensitive health information, they must become proactive in their health data security and privacy efforts. In his role as Vice President & Chief Information Security Officer at Sentara Healthcare, an integrated health system in the mid-Atlantic, Dan Bowden has come to understand the importance of actively testing health IT infrastructure for vulnerabilities, both internally and externally. The insights gained from these activities coupled with lessons learned from his peers at other institutions allow his and other organizations to be on the front foot regarding new and emerging threats. Learning objectives - Understand the current threat landscape facing healthcare organizations - Learn strategies for identifying and remediating vulnerabilities across health IT systems - Address the need for the healthcare industry to work collaboratively through knowledge sharing