Cyber threats are increasing, and the healthcare industry is the primary target, putting both patient data and business operations at risk. The Statista report highlights that cyberattacks increased from 60% in 2023 to 67% in 2024, marking the highest level ever recorded. It is essential for all organizations to build strong data security to protect patients’ personal sensitive information and adhere to data privacy compliance.
Here are some of the recent attacks that highlight the importance of why you need to protect your patient’s healthcare information:
- Nearly 190 million individuals lost their data from the recent ransomware attack on the United Health Group, resulting in a financial loss of over $3 billion.
- Another incident happened with the 2021 Scripps Health, where the ransomware attack caused a monetary loss of $113 million.
Security and compliance are no longer an option for the healthcare industry. You need to implement the right security measures that can proactively monitor your patient’s sensitive healthcare information and protect your business from any kind of disruption.
In 1996, the U.S. Congress introduced Healthcare Insurance Portability and Accountability (HIPAA) compliance standards to ensure the portability of health insurance coverage and protect the privacy and security of patient health information. Since then, HIPAA has continuously evolved to keep pace with technological advancements and emerging cybersecurity threats. The recent updates to HIPAA 2025 aim to strengthen cybersecurity protection for electronic protected health information (ePHI).
The most important improvements under HIPAA 2025 are:
- Mandatory Encryption: Data encryption will be mandated while at rest or in transit to ensure end-to-end data protection.
- Multifactor Authentication (MFA): Enhancing access controls to avoid unauthorized data access to patient’s sensitive information
- Periodic Security Risk Assessments: Performing regular assessments for continuous vulnerability checks and penetration testing is mandatory.
- Network Segmentation: Limiting lateral unauthorized movement in IT infrastructures for effective containment of threats
- Improved guidelines and incident response: Proper guidelines for incident response and alignment to NIST are mandatory.
- Stringent penalties: Enhanced accountability for negligence and repeated violence.
The Compliance Imperative
Organizations failing to comply will have to pay huge penalties ranging from $100 to $50,000 for each violation and annual penalties not exceeding $1.5 million per violation category. Apart from monetary penalties, non-compliance may impact the organization’s reputation and even lead to criminal prosecution in case of serious violations of patient information.
Compliance is no longer an option – it is fundamental for upholding business integrity while ensuring patient safety. This has been further reinforced by government authorities mandating that all those in possession of sensitive patient data adhere to the new HIPAA regulations.
Despite the importance of meeting the standards, many organizations have cited the following reasons for falling behind:
- Legacy of outdated IT systems without contemporary security measures
- Access to a skilled cybersecurity workforce is limited, and, as a result, the ability to deploy sophisticated countermeasures is restricted
- For small providers, financial constraints pose limitations on allocating funds toward implementing security measures
- Moves to the new HIPAA schemes will require a proactive engagement that, from a readiness perspective, most organizations will lack
The Role of MSPs in Compliance Management
The biggest healthcare organizations lack in-house resources to manage HIPAA 2025 compliance. That is where the Managed Service Providers (MSPs) role is important. Through the provision of security implementation expertise, compliance management, and constant monitoring, MSPs support healthcare organizations in regulatory compliance without overwhelming in-house personnel. MSPs can support healthcare organizations with:
- The Provision of Strategic Security Implementation Services in accordance with HIPAA 2025 Requirements
- Conducting routine risk assessments to identify and address any potential threats
- Providing round-the-clock monitoring to identify and mitigate cyber threats the moment they occur
The Way Forward
A single cyber incident affects your entire healthcare operations. Enforcing HIPAA was never intended to burden healthcare entities, but rather to enforce a strong data protection framework to protect sensitive patient data and ensure business continuity. Partnering with the right managed security service provider (MSSP) will not only help you navigate the complexity of HIPAA but also help you strengthen your overall cybersecurity environment. Through proactive threat intelligence, real-time monitoring, and faster incident response, you will be assured of continuous protection, minimize reputational and financial risks, and uphold your commitment to secure, patient-centric healthcare delivery.
He is a Sales Head, Infrastructure Management and Security Services, US, Happiest Minds, has over 25+ years of proficient experience in IT Infrastructure and Cyber Security. He showcases domain expertise in Cloud, Data Center, Unified Communications, Networking, Cyber Security Governance, and Security Operations. In this role, he spearheads the overall infrastructure and cyber security business.
His primary focus areas encompass business development, customer relationship management, and customer success. He collaborates closely with his client base’s CXOs, furnishing them with strategic roadmaps for their IT journey—from conceptualization to successful delivery—covering all aspects of infrastructure and cyber security.
Suresh’s core competencies are Consulting, Transformation, and Managed Services for modern digital enterprises, ensuring they receive agile infrastructure and cyber security solutions tailored to meet their present and future business requirements.
Before joining Happiest Minds, Suresh played a pivotal role in Mindtree Technologies’ Infrastructure Managed and Technical Support services division, delivering consulting services to numerous Fortune 500 companies globally.
Suresh is a distinguished academic with a bachelor’s degree in computer science and a master’s degree in business administration.
