Abu Dhabi hospitals bolster cybersecurity as attacks increase

Online security experts say cybercrime has been on the rise since the outbreak

Hospitals across Abu Dhabi will have their online security systems tested to protect against cyber attacks. Reem Mohammed / The National

Health authorities in Abu Dhabi have brought in a new programme to ensure hospitals' online security systems are protected against cyber attacks.

A new audit programme, named Aamen, checks the systems against high privacy standards to protect patient data.

Since the Covid-19 outbreak, cyber criminals have increasingly targeted healthcare facilities due to the potential for high impact and financial benefit.

In August, an Interpol report found that hackers had shifted from targeting individuals to governments and critical health infrastructure. This trend was noted by experts in the UAE, who found that attacks had almost doubled during some months when compared to the same period last year.

Last month, pharmaceutical giant Pfizer had its online data storage units hacked, exposing scores of victims to phishing scams.

Aamen, which translates to safe from Arabic, was launched by Abu Dhabi's Department of Health on Sunday to prevent such attacks.

"Protecting patient security continues to be a top priority for us. The Aamen audit programme is a testament to our continuous efforts and dedication to laying a foundation for a robust patient data privacy ecosystem within healthcare sector, especially as data protection becomes increasingly more important in the ever-changing digital era we are living in today,” said Abdulla Al Sayari, chief information security officer at the department.

Sixty healthcare facilities in Abu Dhabi will be assessed by the end of the year, under the first phase of the programme. The next phases will include all remaining healthcare facilities in the emirate.

Following the assessments, Aamen will provide hospitals any support they need to bolster patient data privacy.

Last year, the department launched a comprehensive guide of their data protection regulations known as the Abu Dhabi Healthcare Information and Cyber Security Standard. These standards aim to ensure the highest levels of privacy and the security of patients’ data in line with international practices.

Ten workshops on the Abu Dhabi Healthcare Information and Cyber Security Standard were attended by more than 1,500 healthcare facilities in the emirate.