Securing the Next Generation of Healthcare: A Preview of HIMSS 2019

Across the healthcare space, organizations are making digital transformation a top priority. As hospitals and other healthcare organizations continue to introduce a variety of new and innovative technologies and devices, healthcare IT professionals are finding their network ecosystems increasingly dominated by a growing number of cybersecurity solutions from a number of different vendors.

In order to ensure an optimal security posture across multi-vendor environments, healthcare IT teams must be able to navigate these multi-vendor networks while minimizing the compliance issues surrounding the collection and use of threat intelligence.

At HIMSS 2019, the Health Information and Management Systems Society conference, that’s exactly what we intend to discuss. Join Fortinet along with a community of over 70,000 members, 630 corporate sponsors, and 450 nonprofits as we collaborate and discuss with each other and experts in the field on how to improve the healthcare space.

HIMSS 2019 Conference

HIMSS 2019 will be held February 11-15 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. Fortinet is proud to attend this year’s event and meet with healthcare cybersecurity professionals working on the forefront of digital transformation and healthcare innovation initiatives. Join us for the variety of workshops, roundtables, and keynotes being delivered this year by healthcare IT thought leaders.

We’re also looking forward to meeting with event attendees on the exhibit floor at our booth, #821. Attendees can visit with our team of security experts for demonstrations on the latest defense solutions for healthcare networks, as well as in-person meetings with Fortinet team members. Additionally, Fortinet will be hosting a lecture on targeting legal risk and threat intelligence across multi-vendor ecosystems.

Let's Get Real

Let’s Get Real: Targeting Legal Risk and Threat Intelligence will be led by Sonia Arista, Fortinet’s Healthcare Practice Director, and Julia R. Hesse, an attorney at Choate Hall & Stewart, LLP. It will be held on February 13^th from 8:30-9:30 ET at the Orange County Convention Center - W320.

These two healthcare thought leaders will host a discussion on the development of data security programs that leverage risk assessment and documentation, as well as application-specific security standards. The discussion will focus on proposing best practices for data security programs in multi-vendor environments, while highlighting the advantages of consolidated threat intelligence. The session will also lay out ways to formulate these strategies while reducing the legal risks of collecting and using identified threat intelligence.

Threat Intelligence in the Multi-Vendor Healthcare Ecosystem

In the healthcare space, there is a unique dependence on digital devices and the IoT. Unlike other industries, these devices are crucial to the wellbeing and treatment of patients, as well as the enablement of healthcare employees who rely on these technologies to treat patients and operate organizations as efficiently as possible.

However, as organizations across the healthcare sector continue to adopt new technology as part of their digital transformation initiatives, the security frameworks they incorporate into their network infrastructures often include a number of disparate solutions from various cybersecurity vendors. This multi-vendor environment presents a unique challenge for cybersecurity personnel as they conduct crucial threat intelligence efforts across the wide-ranging physical and cloud-based network environments employed by their organization.

To overcome these unique challenges, it’s crucial that healthcare organizations establish data security programs that can effectively help IT teams efficiently conduct threat analysis while avoiding those legal complications unique to healthcare data.

Establishing Data Security Programs and Consolidating Multi-Vendor Siloes

As IT teams work to identify network threats and address vulnerabilities, the unique two-front challenge of multi-vendor ecosystems and strict compliance regulations can make these efforts especially difficult. To help network professionals conduct their threat intelligence across disparate vendor solutions, it’s increasingly important to:

• Establish best-practices that help network professionals conduct their risk assessment
• Consolidate threat intelligence efforts across multi-vendor ecosystems to remediate legal risk
• Formulate threat intelligence strategies based on regulatory guidance and security effective security standards
• Select and employ security solutions that support open standards in order to ensure interoperability between and across multi-vendor deployments

To learn more about this approach to effective threat intelligence use and management, attend our presentation or visit our booth for more information.

Final Thoughts

As HIMSS quickly approaches, Fortinet is proud to assist the healthcare space with the expertise, services, and best-in-class solutions necessary to actively secure healthcare networks and address the sector’s unique challenges. We’re excited to attend HIMSS 2019 and look forward to meeting with healthcare professionals, industry leaders, and innovators to address IT and IoMT challenges, improve patient care, and secure today’s evolving healthcare organizations.

We hope to see attendees at this year’s show at Fortinet Booth #821.

Read more about Fortinet cybersecurity solutions for healthcare.