The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which was passed into law by the United States government in 1996, was enacted to enhance the flow of information about medical care as well as how patients and medical professionals handle personally identifiable information.
By law, protected health information (PHI) must be kept in a location that is both safe and secure. Is this location accessible online or not? The medical professional is obligated to provide the information in the format selected by the patient, which might be a digital file or a paper copy.
The Secure Disk offered by Nexcopy is a HIPAA compliant USB flash drive that may be used by medical professionals to store protected health information (PHI) about patients (PHI).
The technique known as Secure Disk encrypts as well as hides patient information. This partition requires a password to access it. When connected to a computer, the secret partition completely disappears from plain sight. Following the successful entry of the correct password, the hidden partition will become operational, and digital health information will be shown.
The hidden partition of Secure Disk is managed by the chipset of the USB stick. The most protection that a technical item can provide comes from its physical components, not its software.
It became increasingly important for medical staff to protect patient medical data as they began to rely more heavily on electronic records and other forms of technology to store and monitor patient information. As a direct response to the need, the federal government of the United States developed these safeguards. The HIPAA is the end product of these legislative efforts (HIPAA). Following an investigation into offline storage options, Nexcopy discovered that none of them were simple, low-tech, or user-friendly. Secure Disk was developed by Nexcopy with these three considerations in mind. Following is a description of each component:
Simple: Always included is the latest in protective technologies
Low Technology: There is no requirement for user credentials or cloud storage. It is a solution that can only be used offline.
User Friendly: Nexcopy simplified the sign-in process for individuals who are not technically savvy.
The HIPAA compliant USB flash drive protects patients’ medical records. Flash drives with a Secure Disk are compatible with Windows (Windows 7 and later). There is currently no support for Apple or Linux (in development).
When a USB drive is removed from a computer, the hidden partitions on that drive are automatically enabled, making it more difficult for inadvertent access to occur. This prevents the secret partition from being accidentally opened. Users can log out of Secure Disk even when the device remains connected to the host computer.
Why Is Compliance With HIPAA Required Of Healthcare Providers?
In the event of a violation of HIPAA, a healthcare provider might be subject to significant fines and the loss of government funds. Companies have to comply with HIPAA to avoid getting fined. The process that covered organizations are required to take to preserve and safeguard patient PHI is known as HIPAA compliance.
The majority of breaches are caused by negligent staff. The goal is to decrease the number of fundamental mistakes made by such personnel. By mandating that employees transfer patient information using a secure disk, the company ensures that it is safeguarded against cyberattacks, data breaches, and the unprotected transmission of protected health information (PHI).
Takeaway
Protected Health Information (PHI) about a patient is what HIPAA was created to safeguard (PHI). The HIPAA-compliant USB flash drive offered by Nexcopy mitigates the risks associated with exposure. It would appear that Nexcopy possesses the most cutting-edge technology for the offline storage of medical records.