Cost of a data breach in health care reaches $355

By Claire Thayer, July 19, 2016

The Ponemon Institute released a few new reports this summer on the cost of data breaches as well as ability of companies to adequately mitigate online incidents and cyber attacks. While the reports cross all major industries, noted below are a couple of important highlights pertaining to healthcare.

In terms of analyzing external threats that arise outside the company’s traditional security perimeter, and use of online channels – email, social media, mobile apps, or domains, as primary attack vehicles, a July 2016 Ponemon Institute report finds that only 29 percent of respondents in health and pharma believe they indeed have the necessary tools and resources to mitigate external threats:

In addition to concerns on how best to mitigate external threats, the Ponemon Institute’s  2016 Cost of a Data Breach Study finds that the average global cost of a data breach per lost or stolen record reached $355 for healthcare, compared to $158 for all industries. 

The complete Ponemon Institute 2016 Global Cost of a Data Breach Study includes:

• The average costs and consequences related to experiencing a data breach incident.
• Seven global mega trends in the cost of data breach research.
• The most common factors that influence and can limit the cost of a breach.