As a healthcare organization, our teams have access to personal information about our patients and their families–which can make hospitals a common target for cyberattacks. 

Our Information Security team is dedicated to keeping our organization safe, but it takes a team effort to protect sensitive information. Below, the team shares tips you can use both at home and at work to stay safe online. 

Be mindful when using AI

• Avoid sharing sensitive, personal, or confidential information. AI programs learn from whatever information is shared. They also compile information that’s publicly available on the internet. So, before entering information into AI, think about whether it’s something you would share with a wide audience. 
• Treat it as a tool. AI can be a helpful tool–but it’s not a replacement for a human expert. Think of it as something that can help with tasks, and don’t rely solely on AI-generated content. 

Protect your accounts

• Use a strong password. Weak passwords are the most common ways cybercriminals gain access to accounts. Boost your password strength by making them at least 12 characters and random–either with a random string of letters, numbers, and symbols or through a combination of unrelated words. It’s also best to have a different password for each account.
• Turn on multifactor authentication. This provides an extra layer of security by asking for confirmation of your identity before logging in. Whether it’s through a special code or biometric details like fingerprints or facial ID, these additional methods help keep your account information safe. 
• Update software. Software updates are especially important for web browsers and antivirus software, so try turning on automatic updates or watching for notifications to know when to update. And once you’re notified, update the software as soon as possible so your device has the latest protections. 

Avoid phishing scams

• Recognize the signs. Phishing attempts are messages that pretend to be from a trusted source–and often try to gain personal information or send malware. A message may be a phishing attempt if it includes the following:
  • Urgent or emotionally appealing language
  • Requests for personal or financial information
  • Unexpected attachments
  • Unfamiliar shortened URLs
  • Email addresses that don’t match the supposed sender
• Report suspicious messages. If you think a message may be a phishing attempt, report it as spam. To do that within your Kettering Health email account, look for the “Report Phish” email in the upper right corner of Outlook. 

• Delete the message. Do not interact with a potential phishing email, as they can include malware or other programs intended to harm a device. Do not forward or reply to the message, or click any attachments or links–including “unsubscribe.” Simply delete the message. 

Meet the team

The Information Security team is hosting an ice cream social in the lobby of Prestige on October 23 from 12:30-2 p.m. Enjoy a sweet treat–while supplies last–and learn about social engineering: what it is, how it can affect you, and how to protect yourself from those cyber threats. 

Can’t make it to the ice cream social? Check out the videos below, where the Information Security team shares additional tips to stay safe online: 

• Election awareness
• Quishing: similar to phishing, but using QR codes
• Open source intelligence: publicly available information that can be used to guess passwords and security questions
• Routers
• Online safety
• Security responsibility
• Password safety