Did you know that PHI (personal health information) is a highly valuable commodity on the black market? The average patient record fetches somewhere between $200 and $300 on the dark web. Imagine what an addiction treatment patient record might be worth to a bad actor. Now, imagine what a celebrity’s addiction treatment patient record might be worth to the right buyer!

As behavioral health professionals, we are entrusted with some of the most sensitive and powerful information in our patients’ lives. We owe to our patients to protect this privilege carefully. 

HIPAA compliance isn’t just another piece of paper. It’s a commitment to defending patient privacy and dignity. After all, with fines in excess of $50,000 and the potential for jail time for just one HIPAA violation, no behavioral health provider can afford to be lax about cybersecurity.  

In this post, we’ll examine some of the biggest cybersecurity threats to behavioral healthcare organizations today and learn what we can do to keep patient data safe and secure from malicious attacks. 

Telehealth: A Boon to Accessibility and Big Liability for Addiction Treatment Cybersecurity

Now that telehealth seems to be here to stay in the behavioral health world, it’s important to safeguard our virtual sessions with the same level of security consciousness that we bring to physical appointments. Addiction treatment telehealth sessions - whether they’re one-on-ones or groups - have unique privacy concerns that need to be addressed. 

That’s why Behave Health offers a robust and secure telehealth platform especially designed for addiction treatment providers. With HIPAA compliant telehealth built directly into our all-in-one EHR, clinicians complete every part of their workflow - from session prep, to session hosting, to session notes, and insurance billing - within a single window. Best of all, patients rest assured that our HIPAA compliant software, with built-in Zoom and Google Groups compatibility, keeps their personal health information 100% confidential regardless of how they chose to attend appointments. 

AI: From Password Cracking to Automated Cyber Attacks, a Good EHR Blocks Bad Actors No Matter How Sophisticated

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is an increasingly powerful tool within the behavioral health field. With AI, we can now dictate SOAP notes to our phones and ask large language models like ChatGPT to write treatment plan rough drafts. Digital therapeutics are using AI to provide real time CBT therapy to mental health patients. Wearable health monitors are being developed that can track signs and symptoms of relapse in addiction treatment alumni. Efforts are being made to detect warning signs of relapse by AI monitoring of phone usage characteristics. 

The possible applications of AI in the behavioral health world are truly staggering. 

Still, like any powerful tool, AI has strong downsides to the addiction treatment community. AI happens to pose an increasingly ominous threat to cybersecurity, especially to addiction treatment organizations. As processing speeds increase, so too does the risk of cybersecurity breaches. Where AI password crackers used to take years to guess passwords, a new report warns that over 50% of common passwords can now be cracked within 60 seconds or less. Over 80% can be cracked in less than 30 days. We can only expect these timeframes to continue to shrink as we develop faster and faster computing abilities. 

This means that it’s more important than ever to use a password manager to invent complicated, unique, long-string passwords for each credentialed login at your organization. No excuses!

Human Error: The Real MVP of Cybersecurity Fails at Addiction Treatment Centers 

While a HIPAA compliant EMR is vital, no amount of smart tech can address the fact that human error contributes to 90% of all data breaches. 

“Human error” can mean many things here: losing your computer, using an easily guessable password, sharing private information accidentally, being tricked into sharing private information, etc. 

Your staff are your first line of defense against malicious cyber attacks. Proving cybersecurity training to your addiction treatment center staff is a very valuable investment in patient data security. Luckily, the Department of Health and Human Services has developed free cybersecurity training modules specifically designed for people who work in mental health services. These modules address some of the key skills staff need to ward off social engineering attacks, ransomware, theft of equipment or data, and attacks against network connected medical devices. 

What to Look for in a HIPAA Compliant Behavioral Health EMR or EHR 

When comparing software platforms for your addiction treatment organization, here’s a few features and benefits you’ll want to keep an eye of out for if you’re concerned about cybersecurity threats.

An EHR with a BAA

A business associate agreement (or BAA) guarantees that your software provider deliver HIPAA compliant service. If they don’t, the liability for any violation is on them - not your organization. You definitely want this layer of protection from any tool you use to create, store and edit PHI.

Next Level Data Encryption 

Data encryption ensures that even if PHI does get into the wrong hands, that it is encoded in such a way that makes it unreadable. At Behave Health, we use the same level of encryption that the Federal Government uses to protect its data. 

Frequent Security Updates 

The nature of cybersecurity threats changes constantly as technology advances. At Behave Health, we automatically monitor for anomalous activities and automatically block potential security threats. Our security experts monitor new developments in the security world so that we can respond quickly to any changes in known vulnerabilities and exposures. 

Controlled Access 

Every user at your organization should have access to only the information that they need to complete their job. The level of access given to a junior new hire needs should not be the same as the level of access given to a clinical supervisor. At Behave Health, we make it easy to control the flow of information to your staff with unique user roles and custom permissions for each user account. 

Other Blog Post About HIPAA, Telehealth and Addiction Treatment EMRs

It’s Here! The First and Only HIPAA Compliant Speech To Text for Behavioral Health Providers

Even Post-Pandemic, Virtual Addiction Treatment Care Will be Here to Stay

4 Ways Smart Software Protects Your Behavioral Health Organization from HIPAA Violations

Your Top 3 Questions About HIPAA Violations and Cloud-Based Behavioral Health Management Systems

Ready to Try Behave Health? Let’s Do This.

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Our all-in-one app puts clinical, administration, staff, admissions, alumni, residents, treatment plans, billing, insurance authorizations and more - all at your fingertips.

Get your free trial started today and see why more addiction treatment centers prefer Behave Health.

PS. Just getting started with behavioral health? Need help with certification, too? Behave Health can also help direct you to the right resources for help with Licensing or Accreditation by either The Joint Commission or CARF. Mention to your product specialist that you’re interested in this service after you start your free trial!