Healthcare has a longstanding reputation as one of the worst performing sectors when it comes to data breaches, which has made it a popular target among hackers, cybercriminals, and other threat actors seeking to gain unauthorized access to these systems. This perception is, in large part, due to a lack of training among healthcare systems and healthcare facilities when it comes to upholding current standards in information security and cybersecurity practices. In fact, a 2021 survey of 1,000 healthcare providers found that nearly 1 in 4 had no security awareness training whatsoever. While nearly all were educated on the HIPAA Security Rule, memorizing HIPAA rules alone does not constitute comprehensive cybersecurity training. Even more troubling, the same survey found that just under half of respondents mistakenly believed that “clicking a link in an email or opening an attachment could result in their mobile device being infected with malware.” It is no wonder that ransomware attacks are such a prevalent threat to healthcare cybersecurity.
Luckily, security awareness training levels have significantly increased over the least year or so. As a result, healthcare has improved its ranking among the most vulnerable sectors for cyberattacks (though it still ranks among the top 5). This improvement has been mostly due to new and proposed regulatory changes that require such training. For example, the Biden administration introduced new cybersecurity rules and requirements for hospitals and other healthcare entities in an effort to better protect the medical records and healthcare data of Americans. Since the vast majority of healthcare organizations now use Electronic Health Records (EHR) and Electronic Medical Records (EMR) housed in the cloud or in databases full of Protected Health Information (PHI), advanced security training for all healthcare personnel and stakeholders must be a top priority to avoid future data security incidents.
Top 5 Challenges to Healthcare Cybersecurity Training
In today’s digital age, the healthcare industry faces an ever-growing threat from cyberattacks. Despite the stringent compliance standards around cybersecurity training set by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), hospitals and healthcare organizations continue to struggle with keeping their personnel up to date on best practices in data security. Never before has this been so important, as new government research discovered that cyberattacks targeting the healthcare sector have risen by a staggering 128% from 2022 to 2023. Unfortunately, healthcare personnel are struggling to keep pace as they try to balance security concerns with delivering high-quality patient care. Even their in-house Information Technology (IT) teams can’t stop all incoming threats, especially those that employ increasingly sophisticated social engineering tactics.
While cybersecurity in healthcare is becoming more of a priority with workers now having a somewhat elevated level of threat intelligence compared to just a few years ago, this industry still lags behind many others and the consequences of a breach have no gotten any less severe. To help fill the gaps in healthcare’s current approach, our experts are here to offer solutions for elevating your healthcare organization’s cybersecurity training program.
- Lack of Continuous Education: Many healthcare organizations treat cybersecurity training as a one-time event rather than an ongoing process, leaving employees unprepared for evolving cyberthreats. Generative AI has made threats more sophisticated than ever, meaning one-off training sessions can quickly become outdated and obsolete. Continuous training—on a quarterly if not annual basis—must be conducted to protect your data.
- Inadequate Training Programs: If training was effective, we would not be seeing so many organizations falling victim to the same attacks so frequently. Having a training program alone is not adequate: training programs must be engaging, informative, and up-to-date in order to be effective. They must not fail to cover the latest cybersecurity threats and best practices, or they risk leaving workers ill-equipped to handle current cyber risks.
- Insufficient Emphasis on Practical Skills: Many training programs focus on theoretical knowledge rather than practical skills. Employees need hands-on experience to effectively recognize and respond to cyber threats. For example, staff should receive test phishing emails to gauge how much of your healthcare workforce is reporting vs clicking on these simulated threats. Remedial training should be required for those who click instead of report.
- Limited Customization: Cybersecurity training is often generic and not tailored to the specific needs and vulnerabilities of the healthcare sector. This lack of customization means that employees may not learn how to protect the specific types of data they handle and medical devices they use, especially devices that are linked via the Internet of Things (IoT). Additionally, it may be beneficial to tailor training at the facility or even department level where possible.
- Poor Engagement: Traditional training methods, such as lectures, reading materials, and click-through online modules often fail to engage employees. Without engagement, employees are less likely to retain and apply the information they learn when the time comes for real-world incident response. Therefore, it is important to create a training program that is immersive and hands-on, allowing users to achieve proper awareness and functionality.
5 Ways to Elevate Your Healthcare Cybersecurity Program
To protect critical infrastructure and ensure patient safety, healthcare organizations need to implement effective cybersecurity strategies that include proper training to minimize the risk of cyber incidents:
- Implement Continuous Training: Cybersecurity training should be an ongoing process to ensure that employees stay up to date on common attack vectors. You should also review and update your training programs to cover the latest cybersecurity threats and best practices, incorporating real-world examples and case studies to make trainings more relevant and impactful.
- Focus on Practical Skills: Incorporate hands-on training exercises that allow employees to practice recognizing and responding to cyber threats. Simulated phishing attacks and other practical exercises can help employees develop the skills they need to protect sensitive data and patient information.
- Customize Training for Healthcare: Tailor your training programs to address the specific needs and vulnerabilities of the healthcare sector. Focus on the types of data healthcare professionals handle and the unique threats they face. Ensure workers understand the role of established security measures such as multi-factor authentication (MFA) and incident response plans.
- Engage Employees: Use interactive and engaging training methods to capture employees’ attention and improve retention. Gamification, interactive modules, and scenario-based training can make learning about cybersecurity more interesting and effective. Then, be sure to follow up to test the effectiveness of your trainings.
- Measure & Improve: Regularly gauge the effectiveness of your training programs through quizzes, assessments, and feedback from employees. Use this data to continuously improve your training efforts and improve ongoing risk mitigation. Work with an experienced cybersecurity partner if you are looking for additional strategies and ways to improve.
The healthcare industry must prioritize cybersecurity training to protect sensitive patient data, comply with HIPAA standards, and maintain proper risk management. By addressing the gaps in current training approaches and implementing the solutions outlined above, healthcare organizations can elevate their data security programs and better prepare their employees to defend against cyberthreats.
Cybersecurity Solutions Designed for Healthcare
If your healthcare organization is struggling with cybersecurity training, UDT can help. Our comprehensive cybersecurity solutions are designed to address the unique needs of the healthcare sector. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you elevate your data security program and protect your patients’ sensitive information.
Take The Quiz—What’s Your Security Risk Level?
New to cybersecurity or trying to improve your security posture? Take our brief quiz to understand how your organization might score when it comes to risk—and what to do about it.
