Telemedicine creates big cybersecurity risks, Harvard researchers say

As hospitals and health systems continue the shift to telemedicine, new issues and risks with cybersecurity have arisen that will require ongoing work to preserve privacy and safe care delivery, Harvard Medical School researchers say.

In a Dec. 16 article for the Journal of Informatics in Health and Medicine, Mohammad Jalali, PhD, IT professor at Harvard Medical School; Adam Landman, MD, CIO at Brigham and Women’s Hospital; and William Gordon, MD, professor at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, highlighted security risks of video conferencing apps and the increase in ransomware attacks on healthcare organizations.

While the federal lifting of restrictions on communication apps such as Zoom and Skype during the pandemic has increased access to telemedicine and helped boost virtual care adoption, it has posed new security risks for healthcare organizations.

by Jackie Drees for Becker’s Hospital Review – Thursday, December 17th, 2020 Read the entire article at https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/telehealth/telemedicine-creates-big-cybersecurity-risks-harvard-researchers-say.html