AHA Expresses Member Support for PATCH Act, Medical Device Security "In a letter addressed to Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), who first introduced the PATCH Act, the AHA said that the association and...more
7/8/2022
/ Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
GAO ,
Health Care Providers ,
Medical Devices
Universities Share Lessons Learned from Ransomware Attacks
"According to a recent Sophos poll of IT professionals, 44 percent of educational institutions suffered ransomware attacks in 2020, and 58 percent of those hit...more
6/28/2022
/ Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Security ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Medical Devices ,
Ransomware ,
Technology Sector ,
Universities
The PATCH Act: Protecting Medical Devices from Cyber Attacks -
In a previous issue of Decoded, we discussed the alarming fact that many medical devices, including those implanted in patients' bodies, are leaving the...more
6/10/2022
/ Augmented Reality ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Medical Devices ,
Popular ,
Ransomware
Student Loan Forgiveness is Completely Unfair to These People
"If President Joe Biden proceeds with wide-scale student loan cancellation, the most likely beneficiaries could include federal student loan borrowers who earn...more
House Subcommittee Debates Device Remanufacturing Definition, Sends User-Fees Bill to Next Stage
"Proponents of the remanufacturing bill are looking to better distinguish between medical device remanufacturing, and...more
5/27/2022
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
GAO ,
Medical Devices ,
Phishing Scams ,
Ransomware
Avoiding Data Breaches: A Guide for Boards and C-Suites
"Recently, plaintiffs have targeted corporate board members and C-level executives alleging that their data privacy–related claims result from a breach of fiduciary...more
5/12/2022
/ Biometric Information ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Digital Assets ,
Facebook ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)
CFPB Invokes Dormant Authority to Examine Nonbank Companies Posing Risks to Consumers and CFPB Claims Oversight Over More Entities Including Fintechs; Says It Will Publish Supervisory Determinations -
"The CFPB is also...more
Data Breach Corner - Cash App Data Breach Affects More than 8M Users -
"A former employee of the company downloaded reports containing the personal information of U.S. users."
Why this is important: Not all data...more
Lessons in Arbitration Construction Dispute -
In December 2021, Alex Turner, Jeff Patton, and Lee Denton in Spilman's Winston-Salem office arbitrated a construction dispute in Norfolk, Virginia on behalf of Sure Lift,...more
Britain Announces Plans to Mint Its Own NFT as It Looks to ‘Lead the Way’ in Crypto -
"Glen said the government was also 'widening' its gaze to look at other aspects of crypto, including so-called Web3, a movement that...more
4/15/2022
/ Authentication ,
Biometric Information ,
Biotechnology ,
Blockchain ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Digital Assets ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Smart Contracts
Biden Administration Extends Pause on Federal Student Loan Repayments Through August
"The repayment freeze, which has been in place since the beginning of the pandemic, had been scheduled to expire on May 1."
Why this...more
Massachusetts-Based Background Check Company Creative Services Faces Multiple Lawsuits Over Data Breach -
"'CSI determined that certain files dating from November 2018 to November 2021 may have been copied from their...more
4/4/2022
/ Confidential Information ,
CRISPR ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Popular ,
TransUnion LLC v Ramirez
The Cryptocurrency Revolution and President Biden's Formal Recognition -
Out of the ashes of the 2008 financial crisis, Bitcoin sprang up like an insurgency, targeting both the unbridled activity of large financial...more
3/18/2022
/ Bitcoin ,
COPPA ,
CRISPR ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
FinTech ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Hackers ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Internet of Things ,
Medical Devices ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Student Loans: Stressors and Pitfalls as Repayments Begin and CFPB Actions Against Alleged Fraudulent Conduct -
On March 13, 2020, near the beginning of the pandemic in the U.S., the CARES Act included a pause for all...more
3/10/2022
/ Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Financial Transactions ,
FinTech ,
Russia ,
Student Loans ,
SWIFT ,
Ukraine
War in the Time of Crypto -
"In the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which side is crypto helping? Both."
Why this is important: The world continues to watch Russia's invasion of Ukraine as it dominates news outlets. An...more
3/2/2022
/ Caremark claim ,
CRISPR ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Insurance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Protection ,
Digital Currency ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HITECH Act ,
IRS ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Ransomware ,
Russia ,
Ukraine ,
Vaccine Passports
Concerning Healthcare Data Breach Reporting Trend -
"There has been a trend in recent years for HIPAA-regulated entities to wait the full 60 days from the date of discovery of the breach to issue notifications to affected...more
2/16/2022
/ Biometric Information Privacy Act ,
Bitcoin ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)
Buying Virtual Real Estate in the Metaverse Now has Its Own Mortgage -
"A Vancouver firm has provided one of the first lending solutions for the whole new world we need to learn about."
Why this is important: A...more
BioPlus Specialty Pharmacy Faces Lawsuit Over Healthcare Data Breach -
"Florida-based BioPlus Specialty Pharmacy allegedly failed to safeguard PII and notify patients of a healthcare data breach that impacted 350K, the...more
2/7/2022
/ Biometric Information ,
Biometric Information Privacy Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Supply Chain ,
Technology Sector ,
U.S. Commerce Department
EHR Vendor Breach Lawsuit Seeks Security Improvements -
"Patient portal hacking incident last summer affected nearly 320,000."
Why this is important: On October 22, 2021, QRS Inc., a medical practice management system...more
1/21/2022
/ Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Hackers ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Medical Devices ,
Nanotechnology ,
Stablecoins ,
Tesla
Student Loan Forgiveness Updates: New Changes Coming in 2022 for Public Service Borrowers -
"Borrowers on track for Public Service Loan Forgiveness, a federal student loan forgiveness program for people devoted to careers...more
One of the most common forms of data or security breaches is the compromise of a business e-mail account that allows a threat actor to obtain financial or other sensitive information. Security professionals report that...more
Welcome to our last Decoded issue of 2021. With this last publication, we wanted to do something a little different. We looked at the top issues that affected the industry and our clients over the past year. And, we look...more
Next year will see the continued growth of digital or virtual currencies, payment options, investments, and real estate.
Digital currencies have been around in some form for more than a couple decades. Many consider...more
Athletic Fashion Dispute in Race to Courthouse -
Lululemon and Peloton are suing each other over clothing design patents and trade dress. Specifically, the case involves designs for athletic bras and leggings. Peloton won...more
Here are 5 Changes Student Loan Borrowers Could See in 2022 -
"Experts say that if student loan forgiveness is going to happen, it will likely be before the midterm elections."
Why this is important: During the last...more