MOST MEDICAL RECORD DATA BREACHES ARE DUE TO THEFT, SAYS STUDY
A recent study concluded most medical data breaches are due to theft. The study examined 108 medical data breaches that included 500 or more patients. 68 out of 108 medical data breaches reviewed were due to theft. The average cost of each compromised medical record is approximately $204 per medical record.
The theft incidents included stolen laptops, mobile devices, discs and thumb drives. The study points out that the stolen data would be better protected if it was encrypted when stored. Encryption is considered the safe harbor for data breaches. Encrypted data require no outside notice because the risk of the data being accessed is very low, according to revised rules from the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.
If you have received a breach notification letter informing you that your medical records have been compromised, then you need to speak with one of our data security attorneys for a free consultation. Contact identity theft attorney Micah Adkins for a free and confidential consultation.