Encryption is key to data protection, but not all strategies look alike

Anurag Lal, CEO of NetSfere and former director of the U.S. National Broadband Task Force, says secure communication should be a top priority for organizations.

Cyber threats against healthcare organizations have been ramping up in the past few years, with highly publicized ransomware attacks leading to weeks-long network shutdowns at some institutions. Anurag Lal, CEO of NetSfere – which provides companies with security and message-delivery capabilities – caught up with Healthcare IT News to discuss what he sees as the most pressing cyber threat, how organizations can protect themselves and how his experience as director of the U.S. National Broadband Task Force helped shape his perspective on these issues. A. Communicating efficiently and securely to protect patient and company data should remain a top priority as healthcare organizations become more digital. Q. On a related note, how can an organization be cognizant of protecting its communications with providers and patients? A. Similarly to protecting themselves, healthcare organizations can protect their communications with providers and patients by modernizing communication channels and ensuring compliance. Regulations like the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act require healthcare organizations to follow specific (and stringent) standards for Protected Health Information, including sensitive patient information like medical histories and test results. A. I predict that cyber-attacks will become more technologically advanced, so our ability to protect organizations and governments will need to become more advanced alongside them.