San Diego Non-Profit Keeping Californians Secure

A San Diego non-profit dedicated to informing the public on privacy rights announced this week it has added a medical security page to it’s website.

Securing our medical records is quickly becoming a hot topic. HIPPA rules and regulations aim to protect our medical records and personal information from being accessed by anyone not authorized to do so. Privacy Rights Clearinghouse in San Diego announced early this week that they have added a service dedicated to providing Californians important information regarding medical records security. Privacy Rights Clearninghouse is a non profit dedicated to providing clients protection against identity theft and any data breach of personal information. Breaches of personal medical records may lead to fraudulent activities at the expense of patients.

SAS 70 Type II Standards

Social security numbers must be kept safe from criminals as well as any personal data that can be used against us. Such information is generally obtained illegally,

which is why many medical practices participate in SAS 70 type II certification standards. Simply put, this means that practices will adhere to the strictest standards of data security when patient records are placed into an online database. Many times it is up to a competent IP provider to securely handle the storage of patient information. Though that doesn’t always happen it is important to consider the facts and consult a nonprofit such as Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. Privacy is always a concern for us, It’s good to see others aren’t taken personal security lightly.

Easily Securing Us For The Future.

Patient ID theft has recently been reported in Houston and California. Cases in which laptops and/or hard drives went missing. While this sort of theft may never go away, the risks of losing patient information can greatly be reduces by cost effective technologies already in place. Private IP addresses that are cut off from the public internet can help prevent ID theft. Health care providers should consider looking into secure HIPAA compliant hosting if they do not already have it. Health Insurance portability and accountability (HIPA) was put in place by federal health care regulators ensuring that all data storage within a colocation facility can only be assessed by authorized individuals. When examining your health care provider’s security and your own personal confidentiality, you may want to ask if they are HIPA compliant. Information like this and more will be available on Privacy Rights Clearinghouse’s website.