Agencies warn hospitals, others about tracking technology compliance risks

Jul 21, 2023 - 02:28 PM
cybersecurity

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights and Federal Trade Commission yesterday sent a letter to about 130 hospital systems and telehealth providers reminding them to comply with HIPAA Privacy, Security and Breach Notification Rules, the FTC Act and FTC Health Breach Notification Rule when using technologies that can track a user’s online activities, such as Meta/Facebook Pixel and Google Analytics.  
 
“Both agencies are closely watching developments in this area,” the letter states. “To the extent you are using the tracking technologies described in this letter on your website or app, we strongly encourage you to review the laws cited in this letter and take actions to protect the privacy and security of individuals’ health information.”
 
For more information, see the HHS press release.

Related News Articles

Headline
NIST says critical vulnerability found in 7-Zip archiving software
A critical vulnerability has been identified in 7-Zip, a free software program used for archiving data, according to the National Institute of Standards and…
Headline
Agencies release guide to protect against bulletproof hosting provider cybercrimes 
U.S. and international agencies Nov. 19 released a guide on mitigating potential cybercrimes from bulletproof hosting providers. A BPH provider is an internet…
Headline
Agencies release updated guidance to combat Akira ransomware following recent attacks
A joint advisory issued yesterday by U.S. and international agencies provides updated guidance to defend against the Akira ransomware group, which…
Headline
Agencies release guidance on Microsoft Exchange server best practices
The National Security Agency, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and international partners released joint guidance Oct. 30 on best practices for…
Headline
Microsoft issues security update addressing critical vulnerability impacting Windows server services 
Microsoft has released a security update to address a critical remote code execution vulnerability impacting multiple versions of Windows Server Update…
Headline
2025 Cybersecurity Year in Review, Part Two: Mitigating Third-Party Risk, Ensuring Clinical Continuity and Addressing AI Risk
In part two of a recent blog, AHA National Advisor for Cybersecurity and Risk John Riggi and AHA Deputy National Advisor for Cybersecurity and Risk Scott Gee…