5 Ways Misconfigurations in Health Software Can Lead to Breaches
When it comes to worldwide spending on technology, you might be shocked to find out that $3,360 billion was spent in 2019 alone. However, minor health data software misconfiguration can turn your entire company upside down.
Are you interested in advanced threat analytics? Tired of Googling “managed IT services San Jose?”
If misconfigured data is your thing, here are five reasons why patient software misconfigurations lead to data breaches!
1. Unsecured Storage Buckets
Amazon Simple Storage Service buckets are a common target for security researchers and hackers. In fact, billions of secret military records have been leaked thanks to a handful of Amazon bucket misconfigurations.
Of course, this situation means that online hackers could access, download, and browse the contents too. However, this is only one example of data breaches due to bucket misconfiguration.
In other news, another Amazon Simple Storage Service bucket was exposed. This exposure revealed thousands of private documents that belonged to an online hosting provider.
Do not want this to happen to your healthcare company?
If so, you must check the access control lists for all of your Amazon Simple Storage Service buckets. By ensuring that your objects and buckets are not publicly visible, you will be able to save sensitive data in the event of an emergency!
2. Vulnerable Open-Source Software
From cloud computing to hosting services, it can be dangerous to use vulnerable open-source software. Let’s face it: the cloud is the best place for organizations to create services and applications. That is why OSS, or open-source software, has become the gateway to these environments.
Sadly, open-source software also comes with a lot of technical data and responsibilities. When technological vulnerabilities need to be taken care of, default settings can be exposed, leaving clients at risk.
If you choose to ignore this warning, do not be surprised if your healthcare company suffers from a patient data breach in the future. All this is to say that neglecting to service this issue can lead to major breaches of private financial information.
As a matter of fact, unsecured default settings can cause your open-source database to be even further compromised. Nobody wants that, right?
3. Trade Secrets Leaked Online
Concerned about your healthcare company’s development secrets being leaked online?
If yes, you are really not alone. In case you did not know, forgetting to clean up configuration files before checking them out of your online repository is a big no-no. Also, leaving your configuration files in an online repository to be publicly accessed is a huge mistake.
Since the cloud lets you automate everything, developers have left passwords in repositories. Once this sensitive information is uncovered, hackers can easily use it to:
- Mine cryptocurrency
- Spin up resources
- Search for secrets
To prevent this, we suggest that you install multi-factor authentication codes for your health data software. Plus, there is no harm in using a service that stores trade secrets to avoid this from occurring too. As long as you do not mind keeping track of configuration changes in your files, you can avoid misconfigurations at the workplace.
4. Coding Error
Naturally, coding errors are the number one misconfiguration in patient health data software. Think about the massive data breach that recently happened to the University of Washington School of Medicine.
Due to a simple coding error, all of the data that was transferred to a new server was compromised. As if that is not enough, these files exposed sensitive health information about their clients, which included:
- Patient names
- Patient medical record numbers
- The purpose and description of each visit
You might already know this, but private medical files are stored to share with protective services, not to mention law enforcement and health authorities. Otherwise, patient medical information is shared when they sign up for a research study or another clinical trial.
If a patient data leak happens to you, the only choice you have is to remove saved files from the Internet. For the lucky ones, hackers that neglect to use or expose information that is found in your patient files are your best bet.
When all else fails, contact your search engine provider. Pro tip: this can help you to prevent sensitive information from popping up in search results.
5. Misconfigured IT Databases
If you work in the healthcare industry, then the phrase “misconfigured database” probably sends chills down your spine. However, it is a stark reality in the world of healthcare patient information.
It gets worse: when your company’s patient healthcare files are leaked, prepare to get hit with a big settlement from HIPAA as well.
For example, one healthcare provider was slammed with a multi-million dollar fine for database errors. Although this might not sound like such a big deal, it leaked the private information of tens of thousands of individuals.
Ironically, one data breach was the result of the server’s response to a troubleshooting ticket. Besides this, the business neglected to perform periodic technical evaluations too.
In a nutshell, avoiding misconfiguration mishaps is as easy as testing an upgrade or a change for security measures. Simply testing for user functionality is not enough!
Best Managed IT Services San Jose Has to Offer
Here is the deal: we have the best managed IT services San Jose has to offer.
If you are worried about the safety of your patient health information, then we highly recommend that you give us a call soon.
What are you waiting for? Let us help your business to avoid a data disaster before it happens!
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Do not hesitate to contact us today!
Sagacent Technologies offers technology management and support, including proactive/preventative maintenance, onsite and offsite data back-ups, network and security audits, mobility solutions, disaster planning, and emergency business resumption services. The company serves clients of 10 to 150 employees within the Silicon Valley region.