Ensuring Security and Compliance for Life Sciences Data with
HITRUST Certification
Healthcare Triangle
Mar 17, 2023
For life sciences and pharma organizations, maintaining the highest level of data security is essential. In today’s world, that means putting in place a framework to protect sensitive information from fraud, cyberattacks, and other malicious activities. The HITRUST CSF provides one such platform for Life Science companies to maintain compliant cybersecurity protocols appropriate for their specific industry segments. Not only does this certification ensure industry-security best practices are met, but it also communicates trust throughout the patient experience—allowing Life Science organizations to make meaningful impacts on patients’ lives.
Read on as we highlight all the benefits associated with obtaining HITRUST certification—providing your company with a competitive edge.
What is HITRUST CSF and its Purpose?
The Health Information Trust Alliance, or HITRUST, is a non-profit organization established in 2007. The Health Information Trust Alliance (HITRUST) exists to ensure that information security becomes a core pillar of, rather than an obstacle to, the broad adoption of health information systems and exchanges. HITRUST collaborated with Life Science, healthcare, business, technology, and information security leaders to establish the first ever framework, HITRUST CSF (commonly referred to as the “Common Security Framework”) an internationally recognized, certifiable framework that provides life sciences and pharma companies with a comprehensive approach to protecting sensitive clinical data.
HITRUST CSF framework has a modular design that simplifies compliance with global security mandates such as The US FDA’s 21 CFR Part 11, International Standardisation Organisation (ISO), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The HITRUST CSF addresses the challenges facing the industry and fills gaps that several existing regulations do not solve by leveraging and enhancing existing standards and regulations to provide organizations of any size with prescriptive implementation requirements.
Establishing a Culture of Security: The Benefits of HITRUST Certification for Life Science Organizations
Life Science companies must comply with many regulatory requirements to maintain the integrity of their products and services. HITRUST certification ensures that these organizations have taken the necessary steps to protect sensitive data, adhere to privacy laws, and meet other industry standards.
HITRUST certification is invaluable for Life Science organizations, as it allows them to better protect their sensitive data from cyber threats and ensure that data is available across an organization’s systems in an encrypted format, further protecting it from potential breaches.
One of the major benefits of HITRUST is its ability to streamline compliance with multiple regulations, including 21 CFR Part 11, GDPR ISO, HIPAA, and other local privacy laws. It also helps organizations ensure the security of their systems and networks, reducing the risk of data breaches and other cyberattacks. Additionally, HITRUST provides detailed reporting tools that allow life sciences organizations to quickly assess their compliance level and take corrective actions where necessary.
HITRUST’s best practices can help Life Science organizations maintain an effective security posture over time by educating staff members on proper security protocols. By using HITRUST, Life Science organizations can benefit from a unified approach to security that helps protect their valuable data while meeting all of their compliance and security requirements.
HITRUST also provides assurance that organizations are meeting the highest standards for secure data handling by conducting regular on-site assessments and audits. This can help organizations build trust with their customers and partners, as they can be sure that their data is being handled properly. Additionally, HITRUST provides a secure platform for sharing confidential information between organizations, reducing the risk of sensitive data falling into the wrong hands.
By bringing structure and best practices to the entire organization, the HITRUST CSF empowers Life Science companies to reduce risk, demonstrate compliance right through their supply chain and optimize operations.
As trusted assurance in the exchange of sensitive clinical and patient information continues to rise, the HITRUST CSF stands poised as the gold standard for life sciences organizations looking to proactively protect themselves while having visibility across their ecosystem.
Partner with HITRUST Vendors to Protect Your Sensitive Information
Working with a HITRUST certified vendor can assure partners and patients that their data is maintained with the highest level of security and integrity.
Healthcare Triangle takes data security extremely seriously, because of our commitment to building a stronger security posture –our Cloud and Data Platform (CaDP) has earned certified status for information security by HITRUST. HITRUST Risk-based, multi-year certified status demonstrates that HCTI’s Cloud and Data Platform (CaDP), marketed as CloudEzTM and DataEzTM, has met key regulations and industry-defined requirements and is appropriately managing risk. This achievement places us in an elite group of organizations worldwide that have earned this certification.
HITRUST certification now enables our Life Science clients to leverage CloudEz to host GxP, PHI, and other sensitive applications. In addition, DataEz platform offers a highly modular, scalable, and API-driven platform to enable AI engineering, data analytics, data security, and compliance that allows organizations to derive meaningful insights out of complex datasets such as real-world data or genomic data.
Our HITRUST Risk-based, 2-year certification is evidence that we are at the forefront of industry best practices for information risk management and compliance.