Strengthening Cybersecurity in Healthcare (2024)

A Collaborative Approach Between Accenture and Palo Alto Networks

To improve patient outcomes and experiences, today’s healthcare organizations are increasingly adopting innovative technologies, such as AI, Cloud, and IoT. While beneficial, these technologies increase risk by expanding the attack surface. Protecting the sensitive data at the heart of modern healthcare operations requires a robust cybersecurity strategy. But every healthcare company is unique. Accenture and Palo Alto Networks have joined forces to help healthcare organizations tailor strong cyber defenses to their individual requirements. Our partnership helps ensure that every member of the healthcare ecosystem can safeguard its sensitive data and provide continued availability of care operations.

Customized Healthcare Security Roadmap

To meet the healthcare industry’s unique needs, Palo Alto Networks and Accenture recently created a custom-tailored Healthcare Security Roadmap. Our collaborative approach provides access to the best-in-class AI and security technologies alongside deep industry expertise and dedicated resources, enabling our partnership to deliver comprehensive protection for healthcare organizations.

The Healthcare Security Roadmap applies a Unit 42 intelligence-led approach to security transformation and incident response, informed by Accenture’s and Palo Alto Networks’ expertise in performing full-scale cybersecurity transformations for healthcare organizations. We calibrate defenses to counter the most prominent threats and attacks against healthcare organizations.

The engagement includes a comprehensive evaluation of the client’s on-premises and cloud environments. We perform threat profiling, network threat assessments, cloud and data security evaluations, and vulnerability discovery across cloud workloads and hosts to move healthcare organizations toward a more robust data protection strategy. There are eight modules included:

Strengthening Cybersecurity in Healthcare (1)

A collaborative incident response workshop takes place with the relevant executives with actual scenarios Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 has responded to in the past. The assessment is designed to be low-touch, ensuring little disruption to IT operations. At the end of the evaluation, clients receive a detailed report with findings, highlighting the most urgent issues and providing practical solutions for a clear path to improved security.

The Healthcare Security Roadmap enables clients to collaborate with Accenture and Palo Alto Networks to identify and analyze cloud-based vulnerabilities, and enhance the organization's understanding of its security posture and incident response capabilities. When a major payer worked with Accenture and Palo Alto Networks to implement advanced security measures, they were able to reduce the number of security incidents they saw by 40%. Our clients’ real-world experiences highlight the effectiveness of this engagement for enhancing data security and operational resilience.

The Need to Calibrate Defenses for Present-Day Threats

The adoption of new technologies in Healthcare, including AI, and the increasing value of healthcare data make the industry a prime target for cyberattacks. Healthcare organizations must prioritize continuous improvement and vigilance to stay ahead of emerging threats.

One example is large-scale cloud migration. Nearly 46% of healthcare organizations cite security concerns as a primary barrier to cloud adoption. The complexity of managing compliance across various platforms and regions further complicates the landscape, so healthcare providers and payers need to think strategically about enhancing cloud security.

Data breaches also remain a persistent threat in the healthcare sector. Breaches can be devastating, costing their victims in this sector an estimated average of $10.1 million. According to a Ponemon Institute report, 56% of healthcare organizations have experienced a data breach caused by a third-party vendor. These breaches compromise patient privacy and undermine trust in healthcare institutions, highlighting the critical need for effective supply chain security strategies.

The high value of medical data makes healthcare organizations a prime target for cybercriminals. Cyber attacks can disrupt healthcare services, compromise patient safety, and even interrupt the ability to provide care to patients. Healthcare security teams must stay vigilant and adopt proactive measures to mitigate threats.

A Collaborative Approach — Palo Alto Networks and Accenture

The right cybersecurity strategy can mitigate both compliance and data security risks – all while protecting patient privacy. With AI-powered technologies and deep industry expertise, Accenture and Palo Alto Networks make it faster and easier for organizations to level up their security posture. Our partnership empowers clients to navigate the complexities of cybersecurity and protect critical assets and patient data. In particular, the Healthcare Security Roadmap equips healthcare organizations with the knowledge and tools they need to build proactive defenses and create a secure and resilient future.

The comprehensive Healthcare Security Roadmap assessment provides actionable solutions tailored to each organization’s unique needs. If you’re interested in taking proactive steps toward securing critical systems and data, contact your Accenture security partner or Palo Alto Networks industry expert today. We look forward to discussing how our joint solutions can enhance your cybersecurity posture.

Strengthening Cybersecurity in Healthcare (2024)

FAQs

How can cybersecurity be improved in healthcare? ›

  1. Establish a Security Culture: ...
  2. Protect Mobile Devices. ...
  3. Maintain Good Computer Habits. ...
  4. Use a Firewall. ...
  5. Install and Maintain Anti-Virus Software. ...
  6. Plan for the Unexpected. ...
  7. Control Access to Protected Health Information. ...
  8. Use Strong Passwords and Change Them Regularly.

What are three things we can do to strengthen cybersecurity? ›

Three easy steps to improve your cybersecurity
  • Step 1 - Spring cleaning. The first thing we recommend is to go through each of your devices - computers, tablets, smartphones - and look for apps that you don't use or no longer need. ...
  • Step 2 - Get up-to-date. ...
  • Step 3 - A deep scan.

What is strengthening cybersecurity for medical devices act? ›

Titled Healthcare Cybersecurity Act, the legislation is set to direct the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to collaborate on improving cybersecurity and make resources available to non-federal entities relating to cyber threat indicators and ...

What is the most important aspect of cybersecurity in healthcare? ›

Protect Patient Data

One of the most essential functions of healthcare cybersecurity is to protect patient data. Protected health information (PHI) and personally identifiable information (PII) are popular targets of hackers, and any healthcare provider's cybersecurity strategy must account for these requirements.

How can I make cybersecurity strong? ›

Using strong passwords, updating your software, thinking before you click on suspicious links, and turning on multi-factor authentication are the basics of what we call “cyber hygiene” and will drastically improve your online safety.

Why does cybersecurity continue to be a problem in healthcare? ›

The healthcare sector is particularly vulnerable to cybersecurity risks and the stakes for patient care and safety are particularly high. Healthcare facilities are attractive targets for cyber criminals in light of their size, technological dependence, sensitive data, and unique vulnerability to disruptions.

What are the 3 C's of cyber security? ›

The 3Cs of Best Security: Comprehensive, Consolidated, and Collaborative. Cybercriminals are constantly finding new ways to exploit governments, major corporations and small to medium sized businesses.

What are the 3 P's of cyber security? ›

Using the common PPP Framework (People-Process-Product), Systal's Principal Architect Tim Watson explores the importance of maintaining equal focus on all three Ps in IT security. It's a well-known saying: “Two's company, three's a crowd”.

What are the key strategies to enhance cybersecurity? ›

Make sure you've set up solid authentication measures, keep systems up-to-date constantly, educate your team on cybersecurity protocols, and follow encrypted communication methods. These steps are crucial to minimize the likelihood of cyber-attacks.

Why is cybersecurity important for medical devices? ›

Medical device cybersecurity is a critical concern because attacks on medical devices not only can result in the compromise of protected health information (PHI), but they can also cause patient safety issues due to interference with care delivery.

What is the cyber security policy in healthcare? ›

Cybersecurity policies create standards for your staff, enabling them to keep sensitive information private. HIPAA requires healthcare organizations to have policies and procedures that limit the use and disclosure of patient information, and to ensure that it is not accessed inappropriately.

How does HIPAA affect cybersecurity? ›

The primary goal of HIPAA is to protect the PHI entrusted to covered entities and their business associates. The HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules mandate that organizations control and monitor access to PHI and protect it against unauthorized access.

What is the cybersecurity strategy in healthcare? ›

Healthcare cybersecurity measures are the tools and strategies that healthcare organizations use to ensure patient safety and maintain the privacy of sensitive healthcare data. Healthcare cybersecurity ensures that sensitive healthcare data stays restricted, and can only be accessed by parties like a patient's doctor.

What is the biggest threat to the security of healthcare data? ›

Ransomware is the biggest threat to the security of healthcare data.

What are the risks of cybersecurity in healthcare? ›

Hospitals and other healthcare organizations are highly susceptible to cyberattacks, including ransomware and data breaches, due to their vast collections of sensitive and valuable patient information, limited resources, legacy software, and need to interface with specialized medical technologies.

How is cybersecurity being improved? ›

In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) has become one of the most sure-fire and strategic tools available for cyber security professionals. Due to the increasing sophistication of cyber attacks, cyber security experts have broadly turned to AI in order to enhance abilities to detect and prevent cyber threats.

How will healthcare information technology improve healthcare? ›

The benefits of health information technology (IT) include its ability to store and retrieve data; the ability to rapidly communicate patient information in a legible format; improved medication safety through increased legibility, which potentially decreases the risk of medication errors; and the ease of retrieval of ...

How can cybersecurity culture be improved? ›

What Are Specific Steps You Can Take to Build an Effective Security Culture?
  1. Ensure executive priority and support. ...
  2. Conduct an realistic risk assessment to measure your security culture. ...
  3. Create a Cyber Plan on Where You Want to Be. ...
  4. Provide Clear Cyber Communication on Policies and Expectations.

What are some ways people can improve their cybersecurity hygiene? ›

Regular routines or habits:

These might include scanning for viruses using antivirus software, changing your passwords, keeping apps, software, and operating systems up to date, and wiping your hard drive. Once you get the hang of cyber hygiene, it becomes part of your regular personal cybersecurity routine.

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