Computer Security and Hospitals

After visiting a hospital for the past 20 hours or so I noticed some of the blaring security issues which are probably just overlooked. The most notable issue, which is probably the most serious as well, is the fact that the nurses are rolling carts with computers to scan and enter patient information. Now the fact that they nurses have portable stations is not too much of an issue; its the fact that these stations can access all patient information and they are running Windows XP. While the extended support date is through April 8, 2014 there are a number of security issues that can allow anyone who is really wanting to get access to the system inside. Hopefully, they are planning to do a full upgrade to a newer operating system within the next year. But who knows.... The fact that patient records could possibly be accessed is troublesome. How many other doctors offices they are not big hospitals are using antiquated systems that most likely are not patched correctly or just outdated? While hospitals not only host a lot of patient information, they are often linked to other doctors offices or specialty facilites so that they can easily share patient information. While privacy about health issues has recieved a fair amount of attention, are these HIPAA regulations being followed as they are truely intended?

A Very Serious Dialtone

The aftermath of Hurricane Sandy has brought to my attention and many others, that we have become very dependent on technology. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but when the natural disasters strike, do we know how to do anything? Ten years ago, most people could rattle off a few phone numbers if they needed to. 15 years ago, most people could tell you a lot of numbers, or at least had them written down in a location they could get to. Now, most people do not remember more than one or two phone numbers, and if they lose their cell phone they are stuck. That is until they get on facebook and have people send them their phone numbers. But if the power is out and there is no way to access the internet, most people do not have a battery powered radio to find out emergency information. In a country where we can have backup generators to watch every football game as we tailgate in the parking lot of the Georia Dome; most people are not truly prepared for a minor natural disaster that takes out power for a few days.

Backing Up the Back Ups

As a standard practice now, IT professionals are backing up their company data. Some of these people are also backing up their own personal data. People who are not even associated with IT and have had some kind of failure also know about making backups. Now actually doing that is another question. This post is really about making backups. Most people are aware that it is a good idea. The problem comes when it is time to use those backups. If something bad has happened and you need to use the back up, what happens if the backup is no good? Recently I have tried to access some information from a phone backup. Normally messages on a phone are no big deal, but if they are needed for say some legal purpose, what happens if you can not view what has been backed up. If the backup is bad and never tested, it is just the same as not doing a backup at all. The next step in making sure we save all those important things seems like it will be in the cloud; but this basically makes you sign all your rights to security of data away. This is just not practical for most businesses. So now we must figure out an effective way to not only backup our systems and phones. But make sure are backups will work. Making sure that what we back up our Backups.

The Computer In Your Pants

Its no secret that most of us walk around with a smartphone in our pockets. This advanced computing device has become the lifeblood of most of the world. No smartphone often means no business, or at least very limited business. My friend lost his phone over the weekend and was instantly lost as to what to do. This coveted phone was set up to watch all the SEC football games on Saturday, listen to the Falcons on Sunday and some minor things in between. Such as making phone calls and texting friends. With no phone, he was forced to contact friends through Facebook on a laptop. Facebook has an inherent delay, and most people cant flip open there laptop to check things no matter what their location. These computers (smartphones) also give us directions and allow us to keep our lives organized with any number of apps. 10 years ago, RIM's blackberry was a pager with a couple of lines to view text. Now they tell you who else is online, where they are, and what the weather is in whatever city they may be. Of course I expect smartphone technology to continue to increase for the foreseeable future, but what about the eventual literal computer in your pants. As technology advances I suspect smart threads in our clothes will being to provide information to us on a whole different scale. E-textiles or smart fibers, which are made of semiconducting materials are already being made at universities such as Virginia Tech. I wonder how smart our clothes will become in the next twenty or thirty years.

Computers and Cars

Over the weekend I experienced some techinical difficulties with my car. The simple answer was the alternator was bad, but the car cut off because the car's computer did not get enough power to keep telling the engine how to idle at a stop light. The computer in the car not only counts the mileage and calculates miles per gallon with some extremely weird algorithm, it reads all the sensors on the car and adjust things such as the radiator fan being on, how high to idle the car as it sits and detection of wheelspin and turning on brakes. Some people say the cars computers do too much, when it comes to actually applying brakes to certain wheels to prevent wheelspin or lockup. Modern cars are a far cry from forty years ago when most everything was done mechanically. This advance in technology has made mechanics more of a diagnostic reader then pure mechanic of years past. Cars will tell any problems or errors that are going on with it sensors and help take out the guess work when a car doesnt want to start up. This morning I had to get a $150 key made because the transponder in the key tells the cars computer that it is ok to start up. Finger print technology used to open cars is already out, what will be the next? Perhaps using advanced biometrics to program cars to their owners. No need for a key if the car recognizes the driver by some combination of scans. I wonder what will be done 40 years from now.

Business Computing

Today, the computer is at the heart of almost all business. At one time, when cash was the only thing accepted this was not the case, but with the heavy use of credit and debit cards to make purchases, computers are at the end of every transaction made. It is no surprise that as the internet was comming together to be a truly world wide network, companies like American Express and Visa wanted a faster and more convenient way to lend consumers money and collect interest on those purchases. Billions of transactions are made each day and moving that money around accurately, or sometimes inaccurately, is all done with computers across the internet. Of course, computers are at the heart of many businesses in other ways. Most companies can not function without the use of a laptop, desktop, and a smartphone. Computers are used for emailing other employees as well as customers. Many companies now have websites that host a wealth of information about the company and what it offers and why you should choose that company. Aside from communication, which is a major part of every comapny, computers are used to do accounting as well as produce actual products to be sold. The computer is truly intertwined into modern business practices. Without effective computer use, most companies can not expect to keep up with the competition. Can you imagine trying to start a new business today without using a computer?