Last month's Anthem cyber attack was one of the largest data breaches in the history of the country, and now more attention is being paid to the amount of people affected by medical identity theft.
The St. Louis Business Journal is reporting about the threat this poses to healthcare providers, saying that 48 percent of consumers say they would consider changing providers if their medical records were lost or stolen and 40 percent say that they should be immediately notified in the event that a breach does occur.
A breach can occur either by an individual posing as somebody else to receive goods or services, or by an individual billing a different individual's insurance, which could lead to a misdiagnosis or inappropriate treatment if the affected person does not know a breach to their records has occurred.
The St. Louis Business Journal also notes some effective security strategies, including encryption, data leak prevention and cyber insurance.
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