Scotland tightens security for mobile health-data
Kablenet.com
Published: 09 Oct 2008 16:03 BST
The Scottish government has allocated £1m to its health boards to improve information security.
The money, announced on 7 October, 2008, will be used to meet a requirement that mobile devices used to store patient-identifiable data must be encrypted to a given standard and used only after specific authorisation.
The requirement will apply to any mobile device and media, including laptops, PDAs, BlackBerry devices, memory sticks, CDs and DVDs.
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The announcement follows the adoption of rules on the physical security of records on 4 October, recommended by a report on the discovery of children's records at the abandoned Strathmartine hospital in Dundee.
"I made it clear last week that patients deserve to know their information is secure with the NHS, and that the people who care for their health will also observe their right to confidentiality," said Scottish health secretary Nicola Sturgeon.
"That's why we are issuing a new mobile data standard to health boards today, and providing boards with £1m extra funding to help them meet it.
"This is a new benchmark for information security and should help patients rest assured that their details are in safer hands."
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