Industry News
New UK NHS Cyber Security Services to be Rolled Out to Health and Care
The UK ’ s NHS Digital is set to start expanding the NHS cyber security service , according to an announcement made by Innovation Minister Nicola Blackwood at the recent Health and Care Innovation Expo .
The news comes amid growing pressure on healthcare organisations to ensure that the digital services they deploy are secure and data sufficiently protected . Cyber security awareness is a major step in mitigating these risks .
The announcement coincides with the launch of the new Cyber Security in Healthcare Briefing , from the Journal of mHealth , which combines specialist insider articles from leading healthcare cyber security professionals to provide up-to-the-minute intelligence and insight into the threats facing the healthcare industry along with ways to protect against them .
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CareCERT ( Care Computer Emergency Response Team ), launched in November last year , and is a national service that helps health and care organisations to improve their cyber security defences by providing proactive advice and guidance about digital threats and cyber security best practice .
The service currently sends out broadcasts about known cyber threats and resolutions , and will now be expanded to include three new services , which will start being tested from September :
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CareCERT Knowledge- a new e-learning portal to help all health and care organisations train their staff in cyber security basics , and build up the first line of defence in ensuring the security of patient information .
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CareCERT Assure – a service to help organisations assess their local cyber security measures against industry standards , and provide recommendations on how organisations can improve data security measures and reduce vulnerabilities .
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CareCERT React – a support service to provide professional guidance and advice on the decisive actions to take to reduce the impact of a data security incident , in order to minimise the impact and help organisations recover and restore security as soon as possible . React will also provide additional information about CareCERT advisories where requested .
Public Health and Innovation Minister Nicola Blackwood said : “ The risks from cyber-attacks are ongoing and ever changing across all sectors , and often cyber-attacks on the NHS are not seeking health data specifically , but have targeted a range of sectors with the same attack . But we need to make sure that health and social care information is protected with the highest possible standards of security .
“ NHS Digital ’ s CareCERT service will help over 1.3m NHS staff and those working in care staff boost their awareness and knowledge , as well as helping organisations improve their defences and keep valuable patient information secure . If the worst should happen , the service will also help organisations respond as quickly as possible I would encourage all health and care organisations to sign up to CareCERT and make the most of this valuable resource .”
NHS Digital Chief Executive Andy Williams said : “ The security of health information is key to our organisation , and our new CareCERT services will help us to improve digital security across health and care organisations , from frontline doctors and nurses to chief executives . Good digital security is key to all roles in health and care , and we want to give NHS organisations the benefit of our expertise in this area , so that we can promote best practice across the sector . We want to work with as many organisations as possible , and are seeking their feedback , so we can develop and test them according to organisations ’ particular needs . I look forward to working with people across the NHS and social care to support them to ensure that patient information remains safe and secure in a digital world .” •
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The
Journal of mHealth
The Global Voice of mHealth 10
October / November 2016