Cyber security fundamentals
Protecting health information is an extension of caring for healthcare consumers and everyone needs to manage cyber security risks.
Agency cyber security team
Responsible for how Australia keeps its valuable health information safe and secure, our cyber security team works with the healthcare sector to help identify ways to keep digital health assets protected and secure.
Our aim is to make sure that people who work in healthcare are informed and prepared for any cyber threats that target digital health assets.
To help achieve this level of preparedness, we partner and share expertise with government and private cyber security organisations nationally and internationally.
We're also closely aligned with the Australian Cyber Security Centre. This helps prepare us to respond to any emerging cyber security threats.
The health sector has become a prime target for cyber attack, and has seen increased threats activity and compromised systems being reported.
Why cyber security matters
Whether you're an individual, part of an organisation or a private practice, it's important to always be aware of potential cyber security issues.
If your information systems are subject to an attack, it can put your personal information and the reputation of your organisation at risk. In turn, this may affect your organisation's profitability, access to critical business systems and its capacity to run business as usual.
Being cyber security aware
Cybercriminals aim to find weaknesses in an organisation’s people, processes, or technology which they can exploit. A successful exploit is a cyber attack, which can lead to:
- loss or theft of information or intellectual property
- significant disruptions to service delivery
- reputational damage
- loss of confidence from customers and key stakeholders
- fines if an organisation is found negligent.
Preventing potential cyber security attacks is not reserved exclusively for people in the IT sector. Everyone can should play a part in keeping their personal and professional information secure.
Six practical steps to protect against attacks such as phishing and ransomware
- Build security awareness with the Digital Health Security Awareness eLearning course
- Keep your software up to date
- Use strong passwords and implement multi-factor authentication
- Back up your data regularly
- Do not respond to unsolicited phishing emails, texts and calls
- If you fall victim to ransomware, avoid paying the ransom
More information
Refer to the righthand side of this page for additional resources relating to cyber security.