The health industry is one of the most important industries in the world. It is responsible for taking care of our health and ensuring that we can live long and healthy lives. One of the most critical aspects of the health industry is security. Here are five ways the health industry relies on PKI to keep your information safe!
Digital Signatures
In the health industry, there is a growing need for electronic medical records (EMRs). These records are essential for many reasons, including providing a complete description of a patient’s history and facilitating the sharing of information between providers. However, EMRs are also vulnerable to tampering and fraud. To protect the integrity of EMRs, the health industry uses PKI, or Public Key Infrastructure, which you can learn more about in this guide by KeyFactor.
PKI uses digital signatures to ensure that an EMR has not been altered. These signatures are created using a pair of keys, one of which is public and one of which is private. The private key is known only to the provider who created the signature, while the public key is available to anyone who needs to verify the signature. When an EMR is designed, it is signed with the provider’s private key. This signature can then be verified by anyone with the provider’s public key. PKI is a crucial tool for protecting the integrity of EMRs and ensuring they can be used safely and securely.
Encryption
Another way PKI is used in the health industry is to encrypt and decrypt sensitive patient data. When patient data is encrypted, it is converted into a code that someone with the proper key can only decode. This ensures that confidential patient information remains private and secure. PKI is often used to encrypt email communications between healthcare providers and patients. This protects the confidentiality of these communications and ensures that only the intended recipient can read them.
Authentication
PKI is also used to authenticate healthcare providers and ensure that they are who they say they are. When a healthcare provider logs into a secure system, their identity must be verified before they are granted access. This verification process is typically done using a digital certificate, a type of PKI. The certificate contains the provider’s public key and information about their identity and the organization they work for. By verifying this information, the system can be sure that the provider is who they say they are and that they are authorized to access the system.
Secure Email
PKI is also used in secure email systems to protect confidential communications between doctors and patients. These systems use digital signatures and encryption to ensure that only the intended recipient can read the email. This protects patient confidentiality and ensures that sensitive information remains private.
Blockchain
PKI is also being used in the development of new technologies such as blockchain, which has the potential to revolutionize the healthcare industry. Blockchain is a distributed database that can be used to store and share information. One of the advantages of blockchain is that it is very secure. This is because each block in the chain is encrypted and linked to the previous block. This makes it very difficult for anyone to tamper with the data. PKI is used to encrypt and decrypt the blocks in the chain, which ensures that only authorized users can access the data.
Conclusion
PKI is an integral part of the health industry and its security. If you are responsible for the safety of a healthcare organization, you must understand how PKI works and how it can be used to protect your organization. KeyFactor can help you get started with PKI and ensure that your organization uses it effectively.
