Building Trust with HITRUST: HaystackID Strengthens Commitment to Data Privacy
Editor’s Note: Healthcare data breaches can have severe ramifications, which is why robust data privacy measures are more critical than ever. This article explores the sophisticated nature of cyberattacks in the healthcare system and why health systems partner with organizations to help them keep their most vital data secure. To illustrate the high stakes of healthcare cybercrime, the article discusses the recent cyberattack on pathology services provider Synnovis, which disrupted major London hospitals, canceled surgeries, and diverted emergency patients. Read the article to learn about HaystackID’s HITRUST r2 Certification for our in-scope platforms and how this globally recognized certification underscores our commitment to safeguarding sensitive information.
Building Trust with HITRUST: HaystackID Strengthens Commitment to Data Privacy
By HaystackID Staff
Data privacy is especially important in healthcare, where sensitive information is at stake. Health systems are complex, with layers of specialists, technicians, and administrative entities, all handling patient data.
Let’s say you’re seeing an orthopedist about a knee injury. You start with an administrative staff member who checks you in, followed by a nurse or physician’s assistant who takes your vitals. If you need an X-ray or another test, you meet with a technician before seeing the orthopedist specialist and perhaps one or two more personnel along the way. After quite some time and renditions of rattling off your basic health information, you end your visit with an administrative staff member to schedule your next appointment. With each of these individuals, your personal data is passed on.
The High Stakes in Healthcare
Hackers target health systems because they hold a lot of sensitive personal and medical data, which they can sell on the black market for a hefty price. The stakes get higher when you consider how these attacks impact patients by disrupting critical medical services and delaying essential treatments. Because healthcare providers are improving security measures, bad actors seek easier targets to breach such as their business associates.
Consider the recent cyberattack on pathology services provider Synnovis, which disrupted major London hospitals and led to the cancellation of surgeries and diversion of emergency patients. This attack, linked to a Russian cyber gang, not only impacted critical services but also highlighted the vulnerabilities in the healthcare sector.
Despite this breach impacting numerous hospitals and patients, Synnovis is a dime a dozen regarding cyberattacks on health systems. In 2023, cyberattacks affected 106 million individuals involved with healthcare organizations, doubling the number of impacted individuals merely one year before.
Establishing High Trust with HITRUST
With finances, reputation, and patient care on the line, more health systems seek partners who go the extra mile to keep their critical data secure. Deeply committed to data privacy and security, HaystackID achieved the HITRUST r2 Certification for our in-scope platforms. This certification is more than just a badge—it’s a testament to our rigorous efforts to meet demanding regulatory compliance and industry-defined requirements, including HIPAA, the NIST Cybersecurity Framework, and many others. Standing for Health Information Trust Alliance, HITRUST holds a range of benefits for organizations achieving this certification, such as:
- Strengthened customer trust
- Improved security posture
- A comprehensive approach to risk management and compliance
“Global enterprises need partners to empower them to stay ahead of emerging threats so they can meet complex compliance, information protection, and privacy requirements,” said Hal Brooks, CEO of HaystackID. “By earning the HITRUST r2 Certification, we illustrate our commitment to the highest standards for data protection and information security and instill confidence in our clients that we handle their sensitive information with unparalleled precision and care.”
A gold standard in our industry, the HITRUST r2 Certification includes federal and state regulations, standards, and frameworks, using a risk-based approach to help organizations tackle security and data protection challenges. The HITRUST r2 – 2-year Validated Assessment is the most comprehensive certification available. It indicates regulatory compliance with authoritative sources like HIPAA. This certification not only validates our commitment to data privacy and security but also provides our clients with the assurance that their sensitive information is in safe hands.
“The HITRUST Assurance Program is rigorous and reliable because of the comprehensiveness of control requirements, depth of review, and consistency of oversight,” said Bimal Sheth, Executive Vice President of Standards Development & Assurance Operations at HITRUST. “HITRUST r2 Certification demonstrates HaystackID is taking the most proactive approach to cybersecurity, data protection, and risk management.”
“Earning this certification reflects our dedication to our clients and our focus on data protection,” said Evan Craghead, Chief Technology Officer of HaystackID. “This globally recognized certification validates that our information security and privacy controls are effective and compliant with various regulations.”
A Cross-Departmental Approach to HITRUST r2 Certification
Achieving the HITRUST r2 Certification was a testament to our collaborative culture and dedication to data privacy and security. Our success was the result of teamwork across several departments, including IT, Security, Legal, and Compliance. The team meticulously gathered around 1,000 pieces of evidence across 100 categories, showcasing our comprehensive approach to compliance and information risk management.
“This certification underscores the culture of security and privacy that we have built and continue to strengthen,” said Michael Cammack, Vice President of IT and Security at HaystackID and a 2024 Relativity Security Innovation Award finalist. “It was a true team effort, with numerous departments contributing to ensure that we met the extensive requirements of the HITRUST certification.”
HaystackID’s Ongoing Commitment to Paving a Secure Future
At HaystackID, our commitment to advancing data privacy and security is unwavering. We strive to manage our clients’ sensitive information with the highest standards of care and precision. Earlier this year, we won the 2024 Legalweek Leaders in Tech Law Award in the Data Privacy and Cybersecurity category for our Protect Analytics AI® for Relativity offering.
A few months later, we launched the M365 with HaystackID® Suite for Microsoft 365® Services, a comprehensive offering designed to help organizations unlock Microsoft 365’s full potential for enhanced security, productivity, and collaboration. This suite assists organizations in migrating, organizing, protecting, and discovering data within Microsoft 365, leveraging various services and solutions for archive migration, records management, data loss prevention, classification, and Microsoft Copilot readiness.
Together, we are building a safer, more secure digital future in which data privacy and security are not just priorities but embedded into our DNA and core values.
Assisted by GAI and LLM technologies.
Source: HaystackID