A third of Dutch hospital sites have poor security: report

By Janene Pieters on January 6, 2017 - 07:50

A third of Dutch hospitals' websites do not have proper security and a quarter do not even use a secure internet connection, according to a study by Women in Cyber Security (WICS), Trouw reports.

WICS examined the websites of 97 hospitals in the Netherlands. Of these, 25 do not use a secure HTTPS internet connection. Using an HTTP connection, instead of HTTPS, means that data is transmitted without being encrypted. Tis makes it easier for third parties to intercept and make use of transmitted data. Another 11 seemed to be well protected, but a closer examination revealed that their security is definitely not in order.

Of all the data leaks the Dutch Personal Data Authority gets reports of, about 30 percent comes from healthcare - by far the most of any sector. As a rule the Authority does not comment on reports, so it is difficult to know whether the many reports from healthcare has to do with their websites' poor protection. A lost flashdisc, for example, is also considered a data leak.