Biggest Breaches of 2019

by Sarah Harvey / December 15, 2022

What Were the Biggest Data Breaches of 2019? The data breaches of 2019 were enormous, with some of the biggest data breaches impacting over a billion people collectively. And, like in year’s past, hackers did not discriminate based on industry, size, or location of companies and continued to use advanced attacks to compromise user data - anything from generic, personal data to payment card information and protected health information. Let’s…

Breach Notification in New York: The SHIELD Act

by Sarah Harvey / December 15, 2022

On July 25, 2019, New York Governor Cuomo signed the Stop Hacks and Improve Electronic Data Security (SHIELD) Act which amends the state’s breach notification law in order to “impose stronger obligations on businesses handling private data to provide proper notification to affected consumers when there is a security breach.” The breach notification amendments took effect in October 2019, while the data security requirements will take effect on March 21,…

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Understanding Your Audit: Locations and Sampling

by Sarah Harvey / June 13, 2023

During the audit process, our qualified Information Security Specialists use best practices to determine the scope of the work. If you've never completed an audit, you’ve probably had questions about scoping and sampling. How many locations should be audited? Which locations are most important? How does an auditor develop a scope? What kind of sampling takes place during the audit? These are all valid questions asked by organizations undergoing an…

Most Common HIPAA Gaps

by Sarah Harvey / June 13, 2023

It’s not uncommon for healthcare breaches to make the headlines these days. Whether it’s a major breach like Anthem’s $16 million breach or a smaller HIPAA violation such as improper disposal of secure records, healthcare organizations are falling victim to security breaches at an alarming rate. According to IBM Security’s 2019 Cost of a Data Breach Report, the highest industry average cost of $6.45 million is the healthcare industry. Do…

4 Reasons the Online Audit Manager is the Audit Tool You’ve Been Missing

by Sarah Harvey / February 5, 2024

When you choose an audit partner, there are certain qualities that you’re likely looking for such as experience, attention to detail, quality, audit tools, and the firm’s audit processes. We know that there’s a lot of audit firms out there, making the decision that much harder. If it’s your first time undergoing an audit or even if you are familiar with the processes, narrowing down the right partner for your…