Contact tracing is recognized by health systems and governments as an effective method to identify individuals an infected person may have exposed to disease in order to notify those individuals and take action to prevent further spread of illness. Traditionally, the accuracy of contact tracing has been dependent upon an individual’s memory of (and willingness to disclose) where they have been and with whom they have been in contact in order to track down other people who may have been infected. Connected devices with geolocation capabilities allow for digital tracking of individuals, but also carries significant privacy issues.
Category: Privacy
DoD’s Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification Is Here: What Your Business Needs to Do to Prepare
On September 1, 2020, Department of Defense (DoD) contractors will be required to comply with the recently released Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) requirements. The CMMC requirements are designed to ensure that suppliers, contractors and subcontractors working with the DoD’s Office of Acquisition and Sustainment have cybersecurity frameworks in place “to assess and enhance the cybersecurity posture of the Defense Industrial Base (DIB).” Through the creation of the CMMC, DoD appears to be enhancing the requirements of NIST 800-171, ISO 27001 and other cybersecurity-related frameworks.
The CMMC model delineates five “maturity” levels, with level 1 being the least secure and level 5 being the most secure. Once the CMMC takes effect, DoD will assign all solicitations an appropriate maturity level that bidders must be able to meet if they wish to bid on the solicitation.
COVID-19 and Cybersecurity: Combating “Zoombombing” and Securing Your Remote Working Videoconferences
As COVID-19 has prompted a massive shift by organizations to the implementation and use of remote working solutions for their employees, there has been an unfortunate, but not surprising, corresponding rise in malicious actors seeking to exploit remote working solutions.
Over the past few weeks, the most notable and prevalent “digital hijacking” has occurred on the Zoom teleconferencing application. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been an explosion in the number of individuals using the Zoom application. Prior to the pandemic, Zoom averaged approximately 10 million users per day. However, Zoom now estimates that approximately 200 million users per day utilize its videoconferencing application. These users not only include remote workers, but also many school children and teachers who utilize the Zoom application for remote learning.
New York’s New Data Breach Notification Law: What Businesses Should Know
New York’s Stop Hacks and Improve Electronic Data Security Act, which went into effect on March 21, places a greater burden on regulated entities in responding to data breaches and expands the enforcement powers of the New York Attorney General’s office. In order to avoid penalties, businesses would be wise to ensure that they are in compliance with the new law.
For the full alert, visit the Faegre Drinker website.
COVID-19 & Cybersecurity: What Companies and Employees Should Know About Remote Working
The spread of COVID-19 has prompted an enormous shift by organizations to the use and implementation of remote working solutions for a wide range and number of employees. Unfortunately – but perhaps not surprisingly – this shift has provided malicious cyber actors with additional ways to infiltrate remote use networks. The spread of COVID-19 has brought with it a huge surge in data security incidents, as hackers look to exploit new organizational vulnerabilities and distracted and overburdened IT security personnel.
ED and HHS Issue Updated Joint Guidance Regarding Student Health Records Privacy
On December 19, 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Education (ED) issued an updated version of its “Joint Guidance on the Application of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) to Student Health Records” (the Joint Guidance, available here). Educational institutions at both the K-12 and postsecondary level can be subject to FERPA or HIPAA, and in certain circumstances, both. The Joint Guidance, which was first issued in November 2008 and has not been previously updated, seeks to assist educational institution administrators, health care professionals, and others in navigating what can be a complex intersection between FERPA and HIPAA as applied to health-related records maintained on students. It also addresses certain disclosures that are allowed without the written consent of the parent or eligible student under FERPA or without authorization under the HIPAA Privacy Rule, especially when those disclosures are related to emergency health or safety situations.
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