Indiana health systems unite to help smaller providers tackle cybersecurity Beckers Hospital Review Healthcare News Analysis

pHealth systems in Indiana are joining forces to help provide small healthcare providers with actionable cybersecurity measuresppThe initiative called Healthcare Cyber in a Box was developed in collaboration with the Indiana Executive Council on Cybersecurity a stateled effort originally established by former Gov Mike Pence and continued under Govs Eric Holcomb and Mike BraunppThe program led by members of the councils healthcare cybersecurity committee brings together contributions from the states largest health systems including Indianapolisbased Indiana University Health Mishawakabased Franciscan Alliance Fort Waynebased Parkview Health Indianapolisbased Eskenazi Health and Indianapolisbased Community Health Network The goal is to provide smaller healthcare organizations with cybersecurity resources tailored to their needs offering guidance from larger systems that have more advanced infrastructureppThe biggest thing weve found is that many organizations simply dont have the time to research this cybersecurity resources on their own given all their other challenges Mitchell Parker vice president and chief information security officer of IU Health told Beckers They need a reliable reference they can turn to rather than having to start from scratchppThe initiative offers organizations three levels of expert cybersecurity guidance basic intermediate and mature covering 23 critical areas These resources are available as a free downloadppFor example a user can look at a chart and see exactly what steps they need to take for email security based on their level David Ayers program communications manager for the Indiana Executive Council on Cybersecurity told Beckers The goal was to provide clear actionable steps to help fill gaps and expand capabilities Its also important to note that Healthcare Cyber in a Box has already gone through several iterations starting with the original version then 20 21 and now were working on 30 In that time its been downloaded over 1200 timesppWith the upcoming 30 version the initiative is considering adding a frontpage alert with immediate steps for organizations that suspect theyve been attacked or are facing an incident according to Mr AyersppThe need for such proactive measures is especially critical for rural hospitals which are prime targets for cybercriminals due to outdated IT systems and limited resources according to a recent Microsoft whitepaper Studies show that smaller healthcare providers those with fewer than 500 employees face a disproportionate share of cyber threats compared to larger health systemsppWe see this as part of the broader healthcare ecosystem in the state and we want to ensure that all the providers we work with can keep their information secure Mr Parker said Above all patients come first we are committed to protecting them When it comes to cybersecurity the traditional business boundaries no longer apply We all have to work together to safeguard our patientsppThe US will extend its national emergency declaration related to malicious cyber threats for another year the Trump administration announcedppThe FBI is investigating a cyberattack on Oracles computer systems in which hackers stole patient data to extort multiple USppChange Healthcare is seeking to dismiss a consolidated lawsuit stemming from its Feb 21 ransomware attack arguing the US Districtpp18004172035ppbeckerbeckershealthcarecomppCopyright 2025 Beckers Healthcare All Rights Reserved Privacy Policy Cookie Policy Linking and Reprinting Policy  Employee Accessp