As technological advancement rapidly expands in this modern world, many establishments, institutions, firms and businesses including clinics and hospitals have gone through progress and modernization as well, such as computerization and globalization to have a more systematic way to the organization of data and information. Such things that need for vital improvement to cope up demand for service development just like in the hospitals on its adoption of this Hospital Information System (HIS) in which every scheme makes the whole organization efficient as far as health care service is concerned. High-tech facilities, laboratories, medical equipment and apparatus, emergence of expanded clinical and departmental areas, comfortable and relaxing rooms to medical and patience care are the products of this development. And I am so happy and lucky enough to witness and experience this with our hospital tour-visit to the Capitol University Medical City (CUMC) located along Gusa, Cagayan de Oro City, Mindanao, Philippines.
During our hospital visit, we went to several areas in the four corners in the hospital and to mention a few, hemodialysis unit, designed artworks pediatric lobby and rooms, coronary care unit, eye center unit, IT servers, diagnostic area and many more. CUMC had also a fully furnished suites and rooms with its panoramic view fronting Macajalar Bay. The best one is the presidential and executive rooms. This hospital caters medical, surgical, operational and pediatric cases with its different and latest acquired state of the art equipments and machines. They have chemotherapy unit, endoscopy unit, eye center unit, LSR Heart Institute, Operation Unit, emergency services, OFW Facility and many more. There are several amenities and services they could offer too, but the most likeable one is the warmed welcoming and approachable staffs and well trained nurses. And for having here a few times, they have also the best, competent and dedicated specialists, I could say it is the best hospital in the Island if not in the whole country.
This hospital progresses very fast when it was first established way back 1973 as maternity hospital that would support practicum training needs of midwifery students. As the years pass by, it has evolved to become the premier wellness center in Mindanao. With Its homey ambiance for the patient makes your heart enlightened and vibrant, the feeling is just refreshing and relaxing that you yourself just could imagine to be at home.
With its vision to become Mindanao’s most preferred global healthcare institution, It is a great feeling to know that CUMC remarked as being successful in attaining its purpose to serve its fellow men. Despite of its success, it has continued to aspire for continuous improvement, providing high quality patient care as far as support development and medical needs.
CUMC hospital has gone through with the engagement of Hospital Information System (HIS) or a system-based software, others called it Management Information System (MIS) in other establishments, to help sustain data and information with its clientele for faster and more convenient transactions. These would improve health care quality or effectiveness, increase health care productivity or efficiency, prevent medical errors and increase health care accuracy and procedural correctness. Decrease paperwork and unproductive or idle work time. Reduce health care costs and increase administrative efficiencies and health care work processes.
A very important factor of information is its availability. Availability refers to ensuring the general public and parties to access the information when needed. Such information becomes valuable if the right people have the access to it. But how does data will be ensured accordingly? I think that we should need to have a back up this relevant data for security purposes, this issue may affect the Integrity of information which refers to protecting information from being modified or altered. And how about other form of denying data accessibility to the general public? There is restricted access to any information that must not be due to the general public. Protecting of this information from the unauthorized parties may have an issue of confidentiality. And to ensure information confidentiality includes enforcing data permissions and access control list like having a security protocol to restrict access to sensitive information.
In the Philippines, we do have certain law pertaining to data security called Republic Act 10173 Data Privacy Act. When we say about confidentiality of information, it is a must for everybody to have security of data and disclosure to unauthorized parties is strongly prohibited. Should confidential information about a business' customers or finances or new product line fall into the hands of a competitor or a black hat hacker, a business and its customers could suffer widespread, irreparable financial loss, as well as damage to the one’s reputation.
For an individual like me, it came across to my mind all these things that someday it may happen to me. But along the line, I have to make some precautionary response to avoid it. Yes, I will be on regret if my personal information will be handed by any other institutions just for the sake of profit gaining and sales. Mobile banking transaction, bank account statements, personal information, ATM pin number, credit card numbers, government pertinent documents and any other relevant information to one’s person has its own value nowadays. As much as we want to become more conscious, there are things that are uncontrollable one. Thus, every one of us has information we wish to keep a secret or make it a private the very least. Information security plays a very major part of this Republic Act instituted for the welfare of everybody.
“Information security threats come in many different forms. Some of the most common threats today are software attacks, theft of intellectual property, identity theft, theft of equipment or information, sabotage, and information extortion. Most people have experienced software attacks of some sort. Viruses, worms, phishing attacks, and Trojan horses are a few common examples of software attacks. The theft of intellectual property has also been an extensive issue for many businesses in the IT field. Identity theft is the attempt to act as someone else usually to obtain that person's personal information or to take advantage of their access to vital information. Theft of equipment or information is becoming more prevalent today due to the fact that most devices today are mobile”.
These treats have magnificently reached in the 100 countries around the globe who happened being attacked by the anonymous hackers. These countries are not just plain country because it’s also one of those very advance countries that includes America, the group of the seven richest nations (G7 countries) and even the western world countries which known to be powerful in terms of technological advancement are being hooked by this alarming huge cyber attack extortion. The very user’s file of the affected hospitals, establishment, firms, company and even government are being filed for ransom demanding payment for about $US300 to $US600. As being told that this was the biggest ransomware in the history to date.
But how did the attack come in? As per review according to the reliable source, the attack appeared to be caused by a self-replicating piece of software that takes advantage of vulnerabilities in older versions of Microsoft Windows, security experts say.It spreads from computer to computer as it finds exposed targets. Security holes were disclosed several weeks ago by TheShadowBrokers, a mysterious group that has repeatedly published what it says are hacking tools used by the NSA. Shortly after that disclosure, Microsoft announced it had already issued software "patches" for those holes. But many companies and individuals have not installed the fixes yet, or are using older versions of Windows that the company no longer supports and for which no patch was available
Information extortion consists of theft of a company′s property or information as an attempt to receive a payment in exchange for returning the information or property back to its owner, as with ransomware. There are many ways to help protect yourself from some of these attacks, but one of the most functional precautions is user carefulness.
In the Philippines where governments, military, corporations, hospitals, financial institutions, and private businesses aggregate a great deal of confidential informations about their employees, customers, products, research and financial. Somewhere and somehow what had happened to other countries might also hit the entire country for its vulnerability to precautionary measure for security response as far as online hacking activity. Most of this information is now collected, processed and stored on electronic computers and transmitted across networks to other computers.
May we do some precautionary measure just to avoid it like reduce and mitigate – implement safeguards and countermeasures to eliminate vulnerabilities or block threats, assign or transfer the place the cost of the threat onto another entity or organization such as purchasing insurance or outsourcing. Accept and evaluate if the cost of countermeasure outweighs the possible cost of loss due to threat.
The rapid growth and widespread use of electronic data processing and electronic business conducted through the Internet, along with numerous occurrences of international terrorism, fueled the need for better methods of protecting the computers and the information they store, process and transmit.
Should every one of us are told to be susceptible victims of this online hacking and cyber extortion. Might as well to become aware and be informed of the threat of this activity and for somehow we know for a fact that we have laws pertaining to information security, the R.A. 10173 Data Privacy Act. Should the academic society and government institution work hand in hand to support computer security and information assurance emerged along with numerous professional organizations – all sharing the common goals of ensuring the security and reliability of information systems.
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- PHOTOS NOT MINE