Security Frameworks for Healthcare and Why They are Important

I am no brain surgeon, but I am pretty sure that before any surgery begins, there are specified outcomes, a plan to achieve those outcomes, and a treatment plan to protect and improve the health of the patient. And so it is with IT security frameworks for healthcare organizations.

The primary goal of a Managed Security Service Provider (MSSP) is to protect client data from cyberthreats, misuse of data, and the chaos, loss of reputation, and financial impact of cybercrime. To do this we use Security Frameworks to guide us in our – and our clients’ – security journey.

The primary goal of a Managed Security Service Provider (MSSP) is to protect client data from cyberthreats, misuse of data, and the chaos, loss of reputation, and financial impact of cybercrime. To do this we use Security Frameworks to guide us in our – and our clients’ – security journey.

When we engage with clients, one of our first goals is to assess their security maturity. This is a measure of an organization’s posture toward security and how secure they are actually. We want to know what they have done to secure their IT assets and what their plans are to keep those assets secure. To do this we need to have a yardstick or standard to measure against. Enter the security framework.

What security frameworks are there?

There are dozens of organizations that publish security frameworks. The National Institute of Standards or NIST and HIPAA were both established by the U.S. government. HIPAA rules reference the NIST security framework. CIS is an independent, nonprofit organization with a mission to create confidence in the connected world.  HITRUST provides organizations a comprehensive information risk management and compliance program to provide an integrated approach that ensures all programs are aligned, maintained and comprehensive to support an organization’s information risk management and compliance objectives.

These frameworks allow us to apply a structured approach to securing data assets, measure security maturity, and assess on-going progress toward increasing an organizations security posture. The NIST framework breaks out their framework into functions, categories, subcategories, and references. The functions give us guidance on how to secure a network.

• IDENTIFY — This framework function involves having up-to-date inventories of all your data assets including hardware, software, and users.
• PROTECT — Next, we need to protect network access from threats by means of policies such as multifactor authentication (MFA), antivirus, and antimalware tools, and solid backup and file protection means.
• DETECT — The ability to detect threats via monitoring tools and audit logs is critical in securing IT Systems.
• RESPOND — How you respond to the threats unleashed on your system is critical. Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) tools work like antivirus software and can detect and notify IT staff of malware infections, but they also have the enhanced capability to respond to threats by directly stopping them and even restoring damaged files to their previous state.
• RECOVER — Finally, the ability to recover from a cyberattack is a key part of security frameworks. If (when) breached, you need to get back to work. This is dependent upon healthy, secure backups and a tested recovery plan.

How MTS Secure combines all of the good

MTS has developed a security framework for our healthcare clients to help them understand and address all the points of vulnerability in their systems.

• PEOPLE — employee training, policies, procedures
• ENDPOINTS — protect every device…remote or onsite
• APPLICATIONS — air-gapped backup
• DATA — encrypt critical data in-transit and at-rest
• NETWORK — segment network to shield and protect from threats

How well you prepare for and execute the recommendations within your chosen Security Framework helps determine your level of security maturity. Security maturity is nothing more than a score indicating how prepared you are to repel security threats and respond to them. The higher your score, the better your security posture.

By committing to working within a security framework, you put yourself on the path toward increasing your security maturity. The framework guides you in reducing your exposure to security threats and ensures you are prepared should you have to deal with a threat or breach.

MTS is there to walk with you on your security journey. We employ a security-first mindset and that’s evident in the features and benefits of every product and service we offer. We work with healthcare, one of the industries that’s most-targeted by cybercriminals, and it must be that way. It is what sets us apart – we understand that there are no do-overs when it comes to protecting your data, business, and patients.

For information on beginning your journey to security maturity, contact us today!