It is vital that health care providers and professionals in healthcare IT understand HIPAA compliance, which ensures the security and privacy of protected health information (PHI). Other industries may also need to be HIPAA compliant, according to the judgment of Retail Insights, LLC. Actionable consumer insights are available through Retail Insights, which extracts a massive amount of data analytics from Point of Sale (POS) machines used by the company’s subscribers.

What Does HIPAA Compliance Involve?

HIPAA compliance is a defined set of industry standards that must be implemented by health care professionals and their vendors. For example, the two most critical of the HIPAA Rules are the HIPAA Security Rule and the HIPAA Privacy Rule. An effective compliance program must be established according to precise guidelines involving steps to create, deploy, and test HIPAA compliance.

Three components that healthcare providers and their vendors are required to address are administrative, technical, and physical, as follows:

• Administrative safeguards are related to creating and maintaining policies, documentation, procedures, and training of the staff. 
• Technical safeguards lay out the procedure for implementing the infrastructure of the network. This involves data encryption, data back-up, firewalls, and protection against malware.
• Physical safeguards include alarm systems and locks as well as access involving card-keys or, for larger companies, role-based access.

Compliance and Security are Required

HIPAA compliance means the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of a patient’s PHI are protected by following mandated guidelines for security. HIPAA compliance and security are inextricably linked.

Contact Aperio IT to learn more about HIPAA compliance for your business.

Every business is at risk because of the continuous onslaught of spyware, hackers, and viruses. Data is valuable, and businesses have a duty to protect their customers. Maintaining an IT department with a security expert and keeping up with the latest cyberattacks is usually too big an expense for small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs). Thanks to the cloud and security from managed IT services, SMBs can afford to protect their clients.

How Serious is the Threat of Cybercrime?

As crime sprees go, cybercrime is the type that tends to be worth the risk and goes directly against the former truth of the words “crime doesn’t pay.” Due to the very low number of prosecutions in comparison to the number of cybercrimes, hackers are apparently encouraged to work tirelessly, per the following statistics:

• $500 billion was the global cost of cybercrime in 2016.
• Considering all the businesses that suffer loss due to data breaches, the average cost to a business is $3.8 million.
• Compromised usernames and passwords are associated with 63% of cyberattacks.
• The number of days a hacker resides within a network before being detected is 146.
• Small and medium-sized businesses are targeted by cybercriminals in 60% of all cyberattacks.

Why are Managed IT Services Important to Network Security?

There is a significant difference between the security a small IT department can provide and the level of cybersecurity managed IT services provide. In the simplest of terms, the personnel required to protect data is more than SMBs can typically afford.

Managed IT services provide teams of professionals, including experts in cybercrime, to protect customer details and other business data.

Contact Aperio IT to learn more about protecting your clients from cyber-threats.

A fearful prospect for many small and medium-sized business owners is the resignation of their critical IT leader. Perhaps the one person with years of experience and familiarity with your company’s computer network and everything related is leaving. With the dependence all businesses have on technology, the temptation to panic might be understandable. Just keep in mind this is actually a common occurrence. You can take the following steps plus take advantage of available outside help from IT support & services to make as smooth a transition as possible.

Gather all Pertinent Passwords

If the time you have with your outgoing IT chief is short, ask for passwords. If best practices have been followed, every essential administrative password is already stored in a password manager or secure password vault. Should that be the case, find out where to access the master password to the password vault. Secure the password file without delay.

If there is no existing file with all the pertinent passwords, have the employee write them all down, including the IP addresses or URLs that passwords are for. Press the issue of needing every password the IT administrator has used. The following are some examples of the passwords that may need to be collected:

• Servers
• Network switches
• Firewall administrator
• Domain administrator
• Administrative credentials for cloud services
• Door codes
• PIN codes

Test All Passwords

The passwords should all be tested while the outgoing IT employee is still there. What you’re trying to avoid is the time-consuming hassle of getting by without needed passwords. With some systems, the lack of a good password can mean a system reset. Every setting would need to be re-programmed, which can be disruptive and costly to the business. This potential disaster is one of the reasons it’s best to rely on remote IT support & services either wholly or with in-house IT personnel.

Find IT-Related Documentation

Any documents and notes related to IT should be found and gathered. When one person runs the entire IT department for a small company, finding documentation is usually difficult. The individual may not have considered who might have needed the paperwork since no one else was involved. For business continuity, everything else related to the environment is needed, including network diagrams, equipment inventory, and more.

Fill in the Gaps

Have the outgoing IT person write down all they can related to missing documentation. Among other things, the following information is important to avoid a disruptive transition:

• A network diagram showing where all essential network devices, applications, and servers reside. In the inevitable event when problems occur, this information would help with troubleshooting.
• Detailed procedures for onboarding new employees. What is involved in the setup, such as company email, procurement of a desktop and/or laptop, and a phone extension?
• How are software licenses tracked?
• Where does the Internet circuit enter the building?
• What warranties, maintenance, and support contracts does the company have, and what are the expiration dates?

Get Help from IT Support & Services  

Instead of going it alone as you prepare for the loss of a key IT person, bring in an expert from managed IT support & services. A managed IT service provider puts team support on your side and avoids the points of failure that result from having only one IT individual in-the-know.

Contact the IT Support Experts at Aperio IT

Aperio IT offers a complimentary on-site network assessment for business owners in Sacramento. Take the first step to avoid the potential disaster from the loss of a one-person IT operation.

Contact Us Today

With trillions of losses caused by cybercrime, increasing cybersecurity is a must for businesses nowadays. Organizations can prevent more devastating, headline-making breaches by improving their network security.

The first half of 2019 has been marked with massive cyberattacks. The US Customs and Border Protection’s data breach exposed 100,000 people’s license plates and photos. A ransomware attack targeted manufacturing and industrial firms. Wired Magazine also cited the American Medical Collection Agency’s breach involving millions of healthcare patients’ records as one for the records this year.

Cybersecurity breaches have lasting negative effects on a business and its relationships. Follow these best practices to help improve your network security:

1. Pinpoint Potential Threats in the Organization’s IT infrastructure

Everything that is connected to the network must be outlined. This can help the IT department identify potential weaknesses in the devices’ connectivity. For instance, there may still be those with outdated software or default passwords. For organizations with a Bring Your Own Device policy, every device must have updated antivirus software and firewall. Unidentified external hardware must not be connected to company devices too.

2. Develop a Tight Network Security Policy

Even small businesses are cyber targeted, so security standards must be in place. Put these in writing in the organization’s security manuals and brief each employee about them. Conduct regular checks of the employees’ awareness about these network security protection standards. Review these standards regularly and update the employees about them. Cyber threats are fast evolving, so network security protocols in place must change as well.

3. Teach Employees about Cybersecurity Vigilance

Train employees to check security certificates, URLs, and email addresses every time before providing their private information or credentials. Encourage them to identify potential threats and compensate them for it.

Phishing attacks still prove to be one of the biggest cybersecurity threats this year. It helps to teach employees how to spot phishing attempts. Some organizations used the following tips to help employees pinpoint phishing attempts:

• Showing them sample phishing emails
• Identifying the red flags in these emails
• Reminding them to always check the email address of the sender
• Telling them not to open email attachments from unknown sources
• Conducting an actual test to see who among the employees still fail to identify phishing emails.
• Give them more training until they get it

4. Monitor the Entire Network regularly

Anyone in the network can be a target so you have to be vigilant. This is why privilege management is important. It limits access to sensitive information based on the employees’ job requirements, not their position in the organization’s hierarchy.

Regular network audits are also a must to maintain network security. This can identify vulnerable access points, especially the ones that do not screen traffic. Fortify these points with an access policy. This may include restricting unknown devices from accessing the organization’s network. Filtering Media Access Control (MAC) addresses is a solid first step. It denies access to any devices with MAC addresses that are not in the company’s whitelist.

A good network security policy may also require employees to go through a heavily monitored virtual private network to access the organization’s network.

5. Augment Cybersecurity Support

Cybersecurity departments often point to the lack of support as a hindrance to implementing a strong network security plan. Aside from hiring an in-house team of IT staff, external support may be necessary at times. It could be in the form of a Managed Service Provider (MSP) implementing customized solutions based on the needs of the organization. This is the go-to practical solution for small businesses and organizations with a limited budget.

Network security affects every part of the organization. It should not be dismissed as a cost but instead a benefit when it means protecting the business, its consumers, and its overall integrity as an organization. A study shows that data breaches have forced around 60% of businesses into bankruptcy in as fast as six months.

6. Use Up-To-Date Hardware and Software

Be keen on monitoring and downloading the latest patches. Regularly check for potential weaknesses and threats and fix them. Protecting network security should not only fall on the shoulders of the IT staff. End users should also be involved by giving them constant security policy education.

Conclusion

Contact Aperio IT if you need help managing your computer systems and network security. Our team will implement innovative solutions to protect your network from cyber criminals while ensuring compliance and driving workplace efficiency.

Acquiring secure IT services to promote cybersecurity is a good step to ensure your company is protected from malicious forces. Professionals who provide secure IT services will be there to guide you and your workforce in keeping all endpoints and networks worry-free. However, the effort to make sure cybersecurity is maintained should not rest solely on secure IT services providers. It is the end-users who should be even more careful, as it is they who roam company networks and use online resources. Companies can lose a lot with employee negligence, but such errors can be avoided. Through well-planned cybersecurity training, awareness and vigilance does not rest solely on secure IT services providers.

Secure IT Services: Cyber Security Training

Building a culture of cybersecurity is integral to make sure that the entire workforce is calibrated when it comes to cybersecurity knowledge. While training may include how to use company resources and provided secure IT services, it can also dig deep with cybersecurity basics like how employees can be safe at home as well, and how they can promote a secure lifestyle in and outside of work. Professionals who handle secure IT services can take the lead in these trainings, with some collaboration with company leaders.

Secure IT Services: Constant Follow-Ups

What transpires in one training session can immediately be applied, as time goes by, these tidbits of cybersecurity knowledge may fade. Companies may fail in instilling a habit of cybersecurity mindedness within the workforce without adequate follow-up. Sessions that aim to remind the workforce of cybersecurity basics need not be actual sessions. These can be in the form of email newsletters, company-wide memos, even short instructions sent to team and department leaders to disseminate to their members. Efforts to follow-up need not come from your hired secure IT services providers. Strategic ways to look after the workforce can be effective, albeit simple.

Secure IT Services: Personal yet Professional

A noteworthy way to make cybersecurity impactful is to bring it to a personal level, yet connect it to how it affects one’s professional matters. Negligence in keeping one’s personal gadgets secure may end up bringing viruses and malware to the office. This is a common occurrence for those who use company gadgets for personal affairs e.g. using the office computer to open social media accounts, or using company internet for personal affairs, like booking flights or online shopping. Chances are, these “bad habits” can ultimate affect one’s personal online life, and also their work-related online resources, such as cloud storage and company email accounts. This lack of awareness can be noticed in age gaps, as more senior employees seem to be less adept in practicing cybersecurity measures than younger professionals. Secure IT services providers can be tapped in approaching this age gap, and also in emphasizing in general that personal bad habits can bite one back when brought in the office. Your personal cybersecurity errors may come back as a company-wide problem, and there’s no greater shame in knowing you included many people in a singular error.

Secure IT Services: Encourage Error Reporting

Through training, secure IT services professionals can emphasize the need to be proactive and vigilant. Slight cybersecurity threats can balloon into major threats, and the enterprise workforce must be pushed to speak up even at the slightest suspicion. There is a bit of shame when one has to admit that they may be the cause for a certain virus or malware to penetrate company networks, but rather than seeing the trouble snowball, nipping it in the bud through professional honesty is the better act. Incident report forms may also be created to promote anonymity when there are specific instances to be reported. Training must make sure that professional honesty and vigilance is part of the cybersecurity culture that is upheld. Company leaders and secure IT services providers must work together to put this habit front and center.

Secure IT Services: Cyber Security Policies

Now that an internal knowledge and awareness of cybersecurity has been instilled, external forces to encourage maintenance of a cyber-secure workforce, alongside reprimanding bad habits and negligence, are compulsory. Policies can be executed to keep cybersecurity as robust as possible. You may work with secure IT services providers to help you in coming up with policies, or in writing down details of suggested policies below:

Secure IT Services: Acceptable Use Policy

Put a strict, discernible line between websites, apps, and other internet-related resources that allowed or not in the office. Some social media sites may appear more personal than professional in terms of use, or the office can agree on what browser to use so that configurations are uniform for all computers. Identifying which websites or apps to use limits gateways for hacker or malware to enter.

Secure IT Services: Confidential Data Policy

Ultimately identify what kind of information stays in the office, and nowhere else. Company secrets and industry processes that took years to perfect must not reach competitors in any way. This specific policy will make sure that company data are kept where they should be kept, and will not reach areas vulnerable to cybersecurity threats.

Secure IT Services: Email Policy

Controlling as well what kind of email service providers will help in maintaining company data. While not all businesses are able to come up with a private email domain, executing email laws will uphold cybersecurity standards.

Secure IT Services: BYOD/Telecommuting Policy

There is merit in the Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) scheme, as it promotes employees to use gadgets there are more accustomed to in promoting work efficiency and mobility. However, a policy to govern security measures for these gadgets will support this request to use one’s own laptop or tablet to meet workload deadlines. Secure IT services providers may come up with ways to give access to antivirus program installations or do routinary scanning of gadgets that aren’t company-owned.

Secure IT Services: Wireless Network and Guest Access Policy

Non-company personnel will come in once in a while, such as industry partners or potential clients. Assigning which internet connections they are limited to is a valid way of promoting the company’s cybersecurity. Another way would be to come up with temporary connections that only function during a specific period. Some companies opt for this when they host events within company premises.

Secure IT Services: Exiting Staff Procedures

Employees come and go, but your company’s human resources team must work with your IT team or your IT provider to cut a former employee’s “IT trail”, such as deactivating company email accounts and making sure personal gadgets are banned from connecting to company networks. These processes should be part of clearance whenever an individual severs their professional relationships with the company.

Protecting your enterprise’s cybersecurity sounds like a tall order, but the repercussions of being lax are massive. A proactive approach should be in place, and it should come from company leaders and administrators.

Contact us to learn more about our Secure IT Services for your business!