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Printer Security : Understanding Health Data Security And Print Infrastructure

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Understanding Health Data Security and Print Infrastructure Although printer security is often overlooked, there are several steps healthcare IT managers can take to properly secure their printer ecosystem. By Mario Doss HP For those who may not see the urgency in printer and software upgrades let me point out how the last two years have seen several high profile, costly health data security breaches from some major healthcare organizations including Anthem Healthcare, Premera Blue Cross BlueShield, Excellus BlueCross BlueShield and UCLA Health System. These examples have served to highlight the importance of Printer security for healthcare organizations and please don’t forget that the Equifax Breach was due to Software upgrades …show more content…

In addition, deploy printers with features that can provide a base layer of self-protection, such as the ability to detect and recover from an intrusion. IT organizations should also ensure that they are procuring their printers and print services from vendors that support industry standards such as Common Criteria, FIPS 140-2, HIPAA, NIST 800-53 and ISO 27001. Prevent unauthorized user access to confidential documents Documents left in the output tray present one of the most common risks associated with print security. In healthcare settings especially, these documents often contain confidential patient information that can easily be accessed, misplaced or discarded. This exposure to private patient information, financial statements, and other proprietary data puts an organization at risk of an immediate breach. Implementing a pull printing or pin printing solution can help prevent this type of unauthorized access by requiring a user to authenticate at the printer before a document starts printing. HIPAA compliance means not just preventing authorized access to patient information records, but also being able to document who has access to those records. When it comes to printing documents, an access management solution can be used to enforce IT policies about who can print what as well provide an audit trail, if needed. Implement a

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