In the final days of 2020, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Health and Human Service (HHS) released a HIPAA Audits Industry Report (“the Report”), that could be quite helpful to covered entities and business associates for tackling HIPAA compliance as we enter the new year. The Report examines OCR’s findings from
FTC Settles Claims Financial Institution Failed to Oversee Its Vendor’s Data Security Practices
Assessing the privacy and cybersecurity practices of third-party service providers is critical not only for employee personal information, but also for confidential and personal information pertaining to an organization’s business and its clients, customers, patients, students, etc. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a settlement on December 15 with a financial institution that it
IoT Devices to See New Security Guidelines in 2021
Setting up that new IoT device you received for Christmas? Maybe you’ve been derelict in feeding the dog and found a smart dog feeder under the tree, one that will alert you that Luna has been fed or that you have to refill the feeder. Smart gizmos are not just for the home, approximately 25%
Personal Data from Thousands of Pension Plan Accounts Breached…Third-Party Service Provider Blamed
One of the last things pension plan participants would want to learn as they get ready to celebrate the Christmas holiday is that personal data from their pension accounts may have been compromised. This is the case, unfortunately, for approximately 30,000 Now:Pensions customers whose names, postal and email addresses, birth dates and the equivalent of
Phishing Attack Messaging Targets COVID-19 Vaccine
In April of this year, which seems far longer than eight months ago, we posted about an alert from federal agencies warning that cyber threat actors were exploiting the coronavirus pandemic to fuel phishing and other attacks. Those efforts have continued throughout the year with attackers now retooling their messaging around the COVID-19 vaccine. Criminal
California DOJ Issues Fourth Set of Modifications to the CCPA Regulations
On December 10, 2020, the California Department of Justice (“Department”) announced a fourth set of modifications to the California Consumer Privacy Act’s (CCPA) regulations. The deadline to submit comments to the modifications is Monday, December 28, 2020.
As a quick recap of past developments related to the CCPA regulations, the Department first published proposed regulations
As Voice Recognition Technology Market Surges, Organizations Face Privacy and Cybersecurity Concerns
A new report released by Global Market Insights, Inc. last month estimates that the global market valuation for voice recognition technology will reach approximately $7 billion by 2026, in main part due to the surge of AI and machine learning across a wide array of devices including smartphones, healthcare apps, banking apps and connected cars,
California Passes Prop 24: Here Comes CCPA 2.0
It goes without saying that November 3rd 2020 was an important day for the future of the nation, but it was also a significant day for the future of California privacy law. On Tuesday, a strong majority of California voters supported Proposition 24, a ballot measure which aims to expand and enhance the
Federal Agencies Issue Joint Alert on Imminent Cybercrime Threat to Healthcare Providers
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have issued a joint cybersecurity advisory stating they have credible information of an increased and imminent cybercrime threat to U.S. hospitals and healthcare providers.
The advisory describes the tactics, techniques, and procedures
Hacked Healthcare Provider Refuses to Pay Ransom, Attackers Target Psychotherapy Patients
Earlier this year, we reported on an evolution in the form of cyberattack known as ransomware –attackers transitioning from denying affected users access to critical data by encrypting it to removing data from the compromised systems and threatening public release in exchange for payment. These attacks typically target the companies maintaining the data. However, attackers