From mobility to combating mobile malware attacks, health care organizations have a lot of work to do with mobile strategies in 2015.

Since the first approved device entered the mobile work environment and the practice of bring-your-own-device (BYOD) expanded into the hallowed halls of the hospital, health care practitioners and staff have been able to leverage the many benefits of going mobile to increase productivity, streamline workflows and lower costs. This allows for faster-than-ever access to critical information. Benefits such as rapid medical and patient data access, content collaboration and communication capabilities have grandly illustrated the effectiveness of mobile devices in the industry and the transformative powers of embracing enterprise mobility in health care.

Managing Mobile Devices

As mobile device management, application management and content management evolved into enterprise mobility management (EMM), the health care IT market recognized how simple and secure it was to manage all the mobile devices, apps and documents from one console while ensuring the data was secure and complied with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations.

The mobility movement also gave rise to the shared device model, which provided particular convenience for nursing professionals, who often work in rotating shifts. By sharing a mobile device such as a tablet among departments and keeping it in-house, hospitals can incorporate a mobile solution that doesn’t overly strain the IT budget. This reduces the chances the device will be lost or stolen, a problem that has been one of the biggest mobile security threats to the industry for the past nine years. Additionally, the sharing also allows for easier device management and purchasing of licensing for apps.

Mobile Malware Threats in Health Care

While these benefits are clear, health care organizations need to be particularly focused on security. Just last year, the FBI revealed that the health care industry was found to be highly vulnerable to cyberattacks such as mobile malware — even more so than other industries such as retail and finance. Expounding these concerns is the fact that the industry is also expected to be increasingly targeted by mobile malware and phishing-centric cyberattacks in 2015.

One of the biggest reasons the health care industry is targeted is because the sensitive data these organizations have access to is highly valuable for cybercriminals. In fact, health care data and information is worth more than 10 times what credit card information goes for on the black market. Unlike credit card numbers, personal information and patient data is stored for individuals that cybercriminals can use for nefarious purposes, such as financial fraud or obtaining prescriptions for pharmaceuticals. It also takes longer for patients and authorities to recognize this type of data was even stolen in the first place.

Developing Security Strategies

With the growing security challenges and threats, and a necessity to stay HIPAA-compliant, it is important for health care companies to develop strong security policies to manage and monitor the devices that have access to their corporate networks and data. Protecting users requires passwords, controlled user access to data and communicating sound security best practices, but more must be done.

Considering the rise of sophisticated malware and phishing attacks targeting organizations’ mobile infrastructure, deploying a protective solution that can identify, prevent and remediate mobile threats is now critical. By using a layered mobile security solution such as mobile threat management on top of the existing EMM platform, health care organizations can safely and securely support mobile devices within their mobile environment, proactively manage malicious mobile threats in real time and reduce the risk of sensitive data leaks featuring corporate and/or personal information.

With data breaches already costing hospitals more than $12 billion annually and a serious hit in the consumer trust arena, health care organizations cannot afford to take a lax approach to securing the incredibly sensitive personal information of their customers. While the global health care industry is not keeping pace with mobile device security, organizations should act quickly to remediate this before it’s too late. Otherwise, they risk being the latest victim of cyberattacks and take their customers down with them.

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