by: Matt Coers

On April 21, 2005, a new Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act (HIPAA) security rule went into effect. The
requirements of this rule, which are basically information security
best practices, focus on the three cornerstones of a solid
information security infrastructure: confidentiality, integrity and
availability of information.

The HIPAA regulatory requirements encompass transmission, storage
and discoverability of Protected Health Information (PHI). Given the
widespread use and mission-critical nature of email, enforcement of
HIPAA encryption policies and the growing demand for secure email
solutions, email security has never been more important to the
healthcare industry than it is right now.

Although many assume it applies only to health care providers, HIPAA
affects nearly all companies that regularly transmit or store
employee health insurance information. HIPAA was signed into law in
1996 by former President Bill Clinton, with the intent of protecting
employee health and insurance information when workers changed or
lost their jobs. As Internet use became more widespread in the
mid-to-late 1990s, HIPAA requirements overlapped with the digital
revolution and offered direction to organizations needing to
exchange healthcare information.

HIPAA in the Workplace
Collaboration between employers and healthcare professionals has
grown increasingly digital, and email has played an ever-increasing
role in this communication. However, email’s increased importance
can lead to severe consequences without proper security and privacy
measures implemented.

In addition to the usual concerns about privacy and security of
email correspondence, even organizations that are not in the
healthcare industry must now consider the regulatory compliance
requirements associated with HIPAA. The Administrative
Simplification section of HIPAA, which, among other things, mandates
privacy and security of Protected Health Information (PHI), has
sparked concern about how email containing PHI should be treated in
the corporate setting. HIPAA, as it relates to email security, is an
enforcement of otherwise well-known best practices that include:

* Ensuring that email messages containing PHI are kept secure when
transmitted over an unprotected link
* Ensuring that email systems and users are properly authenticated
so that PHI does not get into the wrong hands
* Protecting email servers and message stores where PHI may exist

Organizations regulated by HIPAA must comply and put these practices
in place. However, the need to comply with regulations puts
particular pressure on the healthcare industry to enhance their use
of technology and “catch up” with other industries of similar size
and scope.

Privacy and Email Security
The privacy protection provisions in HIPAA pose a major compliance
challenge for the healthcare industry. These provisions are intended
to protect patients from disclosure of any of their individually
identifiable health information. Organizations that fail to protect
this information face fines ranging from $10,000 to $25,000 for each
instance of unauthorized disclosure. If the disclosure is found to
be intentional, HIPAA provides for fines ranging from $100,000 to
$250,000 and possible jail time for individuals involved in the
violations.

The clock is ticking – it’s time to get started
Bringing an enterprise into compliance with the rules set by HIPAA
can seem like a very daunting task to even the most experienced
executives. Nonetheless, the growing dependence on email as a
mission-critical application requires that your organization
implement comprehensive security and privacy policies – and soon. A
solid combination of security policies and the technologies to
enforce those policies can ensure improved security as well as HIPAA
readiness and ongoing adherence.



Dr. Paul Judge is a noted scholar and entrepreneur. He is Chief
Technology Officer at CipherTrust, the industry's largest provider
of enterprise email security solutions. Learn how to make your email
system comply with HIPAA regulations by visiting www.ciphertrust.com