HIPAA
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act or HIPAA, is a compliance standard that is designed to protect sensitive patient data. Any organization that deals with protected health information (PHI) is obligated to maintain and follow process, network and physical security measures in order to be HIPAA-compliant.
Concerns Associated With HIPAA Compliance:
- HIPAA violations attract hefty penalties.
- Adequate training for handling PHI and dealing with malicious security attacks is critical.
- It is imperative to have a Security Incident Response Plan (SIRP) in place to deal with a security event.
- Professional assistance is required to handle the complexity of audits and to maintain the right documentation.
GDPR
The General Data Protection Regulation or GDPR, is a regulatory standard according to which businesses are obligated to protect the privacy and personal data of European Union (EU) citizens for all transactions that are carried out within the EU member states. The GDPR standard is intended to unify and reinforce data protection for all individuals that reside within the EU and to control the export of personal data outside the EU.
Concerns Associated With GDPR Compliance:
- Businesses need to be prepared to adapt, test, maintain and demonstrate compliance with evolving GDPR requirements.
- Non-compliant businesses are liable to pay hefty penalties and can also be temporarily or definitively banned.
- Ambiguous terms and lack of clarity render GDPR compliance difficult to handle without professional assistance.
Cyber Insurance
Cyber Insurance is a type of insurance product that is designed to protect businesses against potential damages associated with cybercrimes such as ransomware and malware attacks. It is a customizable solution for businesses to mitigate specific risks associated with cybersecurity breaches and prevent unauthorized access to their sensitive data and networks.
Concerns Associated With Cyber Insurance Compliance:
- Cyber Insurance coverage can be unclear and confusing. It’s hard to understand what is covered and what is not, so you need to be certain you are picking the right coverage.
- The policies are complex and possess certain constraints and limitations that can be difficult for businesses to interpret. It is vital that you have adhered to and fulfilled all policy requirements to ensure that your claims are not denied.
NIST CSF
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed a framework called the Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) to streamline cybersecurity for private sector businesses. NIST CSF is a set of voluntary standards, recommendations and best practices that are designed to help organizations prevent, identify, detect, respond to and recover from cyberattacks.
Concerns Associated With NIST Compliance:
- Most businesses do not possess in-house expertise to safely adhere to NIST CSF requirements.
- Businesses need to understand their unique cybersecurity risks and vulnerabilities to properly design, implement and manage their security programs and best practices.
CMMC
The Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) is a unified standard implemented by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to regulate the cybersecurity measures of contractors working for the U.S. military. The CMMC is the DoD’s response to significant compromises of sensitive defense information located on contractors’ information systems. Contractors working across the defense industrial base (DIB) will now be required to implement and maintain a series of strict cybersecurity guidelines demonstrating adequate cyber hygiene, adaptability against malicious cyberthreats, and proper data protection strategies.
Concerns Associated With CMMC Compliance:
- All businesses working for the DoD along any point of the supply chain are required to comply.
- Each tier of the certification is a prerequisite for the following tier to pass.
- CMMC compliance will be required by all contractors of the DoD by 2026.
- Failure to comply with Systems Security Plan and Plan of Action and Milestones could result in contract performance issues and/or breach.
