Introduction
Recent data breaches reveal the need to analyze the systems that manage the organization’s and its clients’ private information. Even after the event, changes need to be made to protect the firm’s assets from similar incidents. Therefore, reviewing possible solution paths and potential implementation barriers can shed light on the future trajectory of the company’s network safety. The provided recommendations allow the institution to leverage technology, social skills, and the existing regulations to update its framework.
Ethical and Legal Considerations
Data breaches pose a significant challenge to prevent, as obstacles make it difficult for companies to address all vulnerabilities. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) calls for the full preservation of patient data and its absolute privacy from external analytical tools (Thapa & Camtepe, 2021). These tools may need to manage or store it, yet cannot operate to their full potential because they must delete any links to patients. Implementing artificial intelligence and machine learning security mechanisms is challenging in this legal landscape (Thapa & Camtepe, 2021).
Furthermore, ethical considerations include the risk of patient re-identification from depersonalized information, as well as the need to obtain permission for research based on it. The compromised data must be secluded for further analysis before its extent can be disclosed to the affected individuals. Its sensitivity must be analyzed to determine its uses in fraudulent activities (Moore & Frye, 2020). A corrective action plan will be built upon the outcomes of said assessment.
Recommendations
Technology can provide network protection more efficiently than many other options. Wireless data transfer between devices connected to the firm’s server can be enhanced by adopting stronger encryption algorithms, such as blockchain, to prevent unauthorized nodes from hijacking data streams (Srinivasu et al., 2021). IoT devices may also be protected by adjusting node visibility.
Organizational challenges that must be resolved include the lack of policies that prevent workers from connecting their devices to the internal network. The work climate must prioritize strict adherence to safety protocols, which can be achieved via examples from leaders (Kessler et al., 2020). Workers’ perceptions of the necessity of such measures must be adjusted to align with HIPAA requirements.
It is paramount to incorporate the knowledge of data privacy and security into employees’ workflow, as there are many ways to leverage people’s trust to gain unauthorized access to the network. HIPAA provides a solid foundation for protecting sensitive data by outlining the level of technical expertise expected of healthcare personnel (Kessler et al., 2020). It ensures that all staff with access to technology that could lead to breaches know the risks it poses to the system and how to minimize them. Finally, federally sponsored initiatives related to this case include those that encourage cyber insurance coverage in exchange for regulatory interventions that allow authorities to participate in related investigations freely (Lemnitzer, 2021). For example, it will enable them to assess new attack methods, ransom schemes, and similar activities.
Conclusion
In summary, despite the setbacks stemming from data protection considerations, there are paths the firm can take to ensure its network is not compromised by tools regularly used by malicious actors. It will be important to follow the recommendations above to avoid similar incidents in the future. The full extent of the damage caused by the breach must be analyzed and reported to stakeholders. At the same time, new prevention mechanisms must be implemented in the system, and the company must enact new policies.
References
Kessler, S. R., Pindek, S., Kleinman, G., Andel, S. A., & Spector, P. E. (2020). Information security climate and the assessment of information security risk among healthcare employees. Health Informatics Journal, 26(1), 461-473.
Lemnitzer, J. M. (2021). Why cybersecurity insurance should be regulated and compulsory. Journal of Cyber Policy, 6(2), 118-136.
Moore, W., & Frye, S. (2020). Review of HIPAA, Part 2: Limitations, rights, violations, and role of the imaging technologist. Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology, 48(1), 17-23.
Srinivasu, P. N., Bhoi, A. K., Nayak, S. R., Bhutta, M. R., & Woźniak, M. (2021). Blockchain technology for secured healthcare data communication among the non-terminal nodes in IoT architecture in 5G network. Electronics, 10(12), 1437.
Thapa, C., & Camtepe, S. (2021). Precision health data: Requirements, challenges and existing techniques for data security and privacy. Computers in Biology and Medicine, 129.