{"id":4292,"date":"2018-12-01T00:00:57","date_gmt":"2018-12-01T08:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/todaysveterinarybusiness.com\/?p=4292"},"modified":"2022-06-22T20:43:57","modified_gmt":"2022-06-22T20:43:57","slug":"7-security-essentials","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/navc.sitepreview.app\/todaysveterinarybusiness.com\/7-security-essentials\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Security Essentials"},"content":{"rendered":"

Veterinary practices have become more and more dependent on computers and computer networks as they go paperless or paper light. Because of this dependency, having an information technology security strategy is a must to ensure your hospital\u2019s computer systems stay functional so that you can schedule appointments, provide medical treatments, and charge clients for your services.<\/p>\n

A layered approach is necessary to protect hospitals from the many nasty threats in today\u2019s world. The leading threat is ransomware, a virus that encrypts your data, holds it hostage and causes major downtime. I have seen malware infections shut down hospitals\u2019 computers and networks for three to five days and in some cases two weeks.<\/p>\n

In a 2017 survey of 1,700 IT professionals, 75 percent reported that ransomware had led to business-threating downtime and 57 percent stated that ransomware had caused the loss of data and even hardware.<\/p>\n

Even if you think your computers and networks are secure, there is no 100 percent guarantee. However, you can take steps to provide your practice with reasonable security.<\/p>\n

Here is what I do to virtually stop ransomware attacks at my clients\u2019 places of business. Review these seven areas to see if your hospital has gaps that need filling.<\/p>\n

1. Backup<\/h3>\n

This is by far the most important measure you must have in place to protect your hospital. Remember that backup systems have changed over time, so a simple data backup is not going to solve your issue. Consider:<\/p>\n