Healthcare Strengthens Cybersecurity but Needs Better Compliance and Governance

Cyber Healthcare Organizations Are Really Boosting Cybersecurity, But Compliance and Governance Need Improvement to Address Risks That Have Just Emerged.

Based on HIMSS's 2024 Healthcare Cybersecurity Survey Report, there are considerable advances being made toward strengthening cybersecurity in healthcare organizations, with a need for far better compliance and governance frameworks. The report stresses the new and emerging challenges regarding cybersecurity, particularly ransomware, AI risks, and insider threats. While many organizations are stepping up their security investments, experts from HIMSS say emerging risks can best be managed through effective governance.

While much investment has been realized by quite a number of organizations, HIMSS experts indicate that governance remains a crucial aspect to realize in the attainment of possible ways for containment of new risks.

Providers in this subsector are increasing their budgets for cybersecurity from 10 percent in 2020 to 14 percent in 2024. HIMSS professionals think otherwise asserting that it is scantily enough, especially when it comes to AI where oversight is almost non-existent. Almost 50% of those surveyed claimed that their firms do not have any formal structures in place to authorize the use of AI technologies, thereby increasing their vulnerability to data leaks and AI powered cyber-attacks.

Retaining and reskilling the cyber talent pool has also proved a challenge, even though tools and policies have greatly improved. HIMSS entreats a more holistic kind of approach to compliance & governance, insisting that policies must match continuous monitoring to avoid evolving threats.

Healthcare organizations strengthen compliance & governance to ensure that their cybersecurity strategies measure up to the demands of current and emerging risks.