The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) recently released the results of its 2015 HIMSS Cybersecurity Survey. The survey results are based on the response of 297 professionals, each of whom plays a role in information security in a large healthcare organization. Key findings from the HIMSS survey include the following:
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Approximately two-thirds of respondents stated that their organization has experienced a significant security incident. The majority of these incidents were detected within 24 hours. Approximately 62% of security incidents involved a limited disruption to operations and approximately 20% of security incidents resulted in a loss of patient, operational or financial data.
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Negligent insiders comprised the largest source of a security incident, but 64% of respondents also experienced a security incident involving an external actor. Social engineering, online scams and hacking were reported as some of the external actors involved in a security incident.
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87% of respondents indicated that information security has increased as a business priority. However, a majority of respondents reported that lack of personnel is a barrier to information security. A majority of respondents also reported that lack of financial resources is a barrier to information security.
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Respondents used an average of 11 technologies for information security. These include firewalls, anti-virus software, and encryption of data in transit and at rest.
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Approximately half of the respondents reported that a security incident was addressed solely through an internal investigation, however more than half of survey respondents reported involving third party vendors or law enforcement in connection with a security incident.
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A majority of respondents reported that their organization has a full-time information security professional.
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Almost 60% of respondents received threat intelligence through word-of-mouth.
HIMSS is a non-profit organization with a focus on better health through information technology.
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