Managing PII Data in HIPPA Applications

In today’s age of the Internet, every individual, business, and agency depends on online protocols to store and share data.

This dependency makes the users vulnerable to multiple online crimes, the most significant of which is Identity theft.

Almost 6.64% of consumers became victims of this cybercrime in 2017.

The same year also registered 14.2 million credit cards and 158 million social security information exposure due to data breaches.

The stats made it clear that personal identity information online was not that secure, and that’s when the terms PII and HIPPA came to light.

But what exactly are PII and HIPPA?

Moreover, how do these terms relate to data breach issues?

Let’s find out.

What is PII and Why Is It Important?

PII stands for Personally Identifiable Information.

The term stands for any type of data or information that can help someone to identify you.

It can include information like social security numbers, credit card details, driver’s license numbers, bank details, email, and many more.

These elements are the first target for hackers as they can be used for multiple activities ranging from money transfer to blackmailing.

Hackers can also earn money by selling their identity details to criminals on the dark web.

What Do You Mean By HIPAA Compliant?

HIPAA stands for the ‘Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act,’ a United States legislation that ensures the security of medical data.

It came to light during 1996, as a defense for the data breach, Cyberattack, and Ransomware.

The act framed some practices and rules that helped to prevent the leaking of health information that was related to the patient’s identity in both electronic and physical formats.

The practices of HIPAA also helped with cyber problems related to cloud computing.

Hence, most firms now prefer to use only HIPAA-compliant applications, especially for things like education software development where students’ data is at risk.

Why Is It Beneficial To Be HIPAA-Compliant?

With almost every firm moving toward online storage, there was a need for some rules to secure these storage systems.

HIPAA established these terms.

It regulated the structure of the cloud storage application and the aspects like accessing information input/output and others related to the apps.

Some common benefits of a HIPAA-compliant application are as follows.

• It creates a multi-layer security system that provides the required data privacy while maintaining the flexibility necessary for editing data.
• HIPAA sets backup rules that need to be followed.
• HIPAA regulations set some specific password requirements
• To align with HIPAA, your system will need a quality antivirus and other programs that, in turn, minimize virus attacks.
• HIPAA also sets fines for any violation of their rule, which assures that no firm ignores the required security precautions.

Using this system in cloud computing and cloud application not only reduces identity theft, but they also help in handling sensitive user data and improved with custom authentication solutions.

Here’s why you should consider using HIPAA complaints cloud applications and services:

• The apps that are not HIPAA compliant may not have proper security protocols. It can become a source of information breaches and compromise your whole network.
• HIPAA terms help you to create a system that is high on security and low on risk. It can save a lot of money in the long term. HIPAA cloud complaint applications also offer much better scalability and on-demand features than standard apps.
• HIPPA-compliant apps have to transmit their data in an encrypted format.

Managing Your PII

After reading about HIPPA and PII, the first question that arises is, how do you manage something so crucial?

The most straightforward answer is to divide the management process into steps and execute them one by one. Here’s how you can do it.

Select A Cloud Storage

With the rising requirement of cloud computing, many companies have started to provide online storage spaces.

However, it is best that you look for storage providers that align with HIPPA policies and also fits your budget and requirement.

Here’s a list of five online storage services that you can consider.

Dropbox

This cloud storage company announced a HIPPA compilation in November of 2015. The storage presently offers BAAs with flexible administrator controls. It also offers you the flexibility to add/remove users, set their access rights, and monitor their activity reports. The two-step authentication further adds to its features.

Box

Box has been a choice for many healthcare customers for a long time. The platform announced its HIPAA support in 2013 and has been providing BAAs since that date. Its other features include access monitoring, audit and reporting trail, and granular file authorization.

Google Drive

Google Drive is one of the most familiar cloud services used by the search engine giant Google. The platform offers you the flexibility to store any type of data, ranging from standard .docx files to HD videos, without any problem. On the security side, it offers you multiple types of two-way authentication, app tracking, and auditing. The platform also provides you the flexibility to set access rights for shared files.

OneDrive

Microsoft developed OneDrive to provide users with flexible and secure online storage space. They offer a very robust storage solution for their Enterprise E5 account holders. This paid account can help you with secure sharing, saving, executing, and more. It can also help you with data auditing and risk management and also provide insights about advanced eDiscovery.

Carbonite

This BAA provides a perfect solution for businesses that cannot afford data loss and can pay a high amount for data security. The service starts from a price of $269.99 and goes all the way up to $1299.99 per year. The platform complies with Massachusetts Data Security Regulation and offers you data security at both online and local levels.

Identify the PII

Not all the data that the users provide comes under PII.

There are details of locality, name (common first names), and more that cannot reveal their identity and do not require the high-security procedure.

Therefore, you have to analyze all the data and separate the PII from the rest of the material.

It is essential as storing the general data of all the users will eat up a lot of cloud space and raise the required investment for storage.

Classify The PII

Once you have the PII, divide them into categories according to their user requirement.

Usually, there are three classifications:

Identifiable: This category covers details like social security numbers that can single-handedly reveal the person’s identity.

Combined data: This classification covers data that doesn’t reveal anything single-handily but can reveal identity when seen in a set or two or more.

Storage: This division deals with the location where you are going to store the data. It is essential as this part of storage will decide the accessibility of the data.

There is also a fourth category that divides data according to compliance. However, since you are using HIRAA compliance, you won’t need this classification.

Now, once you have the data, subdivide it into restricted, private, and public data according to their sensitivity.

Usually, the information that doesn’t reveal anything goes into the public section while the identifiable go to private.

Delete Old Data

There are scenarios when you find a lot of PII data that is too old and not required anymore.

Delete these files not just from the cloud but also from the bins and backups.

Set Usage Terms And Encrypt The Data

After you have clarity of the PII, develop its Acceptable Usage Terms or the AUP.

These terms will decide who can access the data and also set the functions that you can perform on the data.

Then encrypt your data start sharing it.

It’s best if you don’t use an unsafe network without encrypting the data and also employ adequate applications to ensure that the data stays encrypted throughout the transfer.

Updating legacy systems can also ensure compliance with modern data security standards.

Develop Policy For Network Members And Deploy It

Now that everything is reread, the only thing you need to do is to educate your network members about the terms of using cloud data.

You can also consider using monitoring, audit, and other measures to ensure that no one violates the safety terms.

It is also ideal for creating logins at individual levels so that everyone can work freely, but no one can access data that are not meant for him/her.

Regular software testing and quality assurance ensure that these security measures are functioning effectively.

Best Practices for  PII Security

Now that you are familiar with PII management let’s have a look at some of the best practices that can help you with this critical task.

1. Encrypt all the input and output channels so that no one can access the data while it’s being transferred.
2.  Conduct Risk Management Audits to analyze the weakness of your network and then deploy adequate measures to fix it.
3. There is no guaranteed way to prevent hacking, so you should stay prepared and ready to act in case of a breach. The sooner you will deal with it, the better it will be.
4. Sometimes, hackers also use physical objects like pen drives, hard drives, and other things to transmit the virus to your system. Avoid these media and also make sure to turn off the system when it is not in use so that no one else can plug in anything.
5. Read the agreement terms of every application before installing it, and use a multi-layer security system.
6. Train your network members about the different hacking processes and use a controlled access system for maximum security.

Final Words

In conclusion, managing Personally Identifiable Information (PII) securely is essential in today’s digital landscape, where identity theft and data breaches are persistent threats.

By understanding and adhering to compliance regulations like HIPAA, organizations can protect sensitive information while maintaining operational efficiency.

Implementing best practices—such as data encryption, regular risk management audits, and secure cloud storage—helps in safeguarding data and minimizing vulnerabilities.

Prioritizing PII management not only enhances data security but also fosters trust among users and clients.

This approach reinforces a secure environment for personal and business information alike.