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"Absolute Software Corporation (TSX: ABT) is the leader in Computer Theft Recovery, Data Protection and Secure Asset Tracking&8482; solutions. Absolute Software provides individuals and organizations of all types and sizes with solutions to manage regulatory compliance, data protection and theft recovery."
Source : Absolute Software
Allina Hospitals & Clinics Manage Laptops ;
Prevent Data Breaches with Computrace
Data Breach is also known as :
Data Breach,
Data Breach Note,
Credit Card Data Breach,
Heartland Data Breach,
Heartland Data Breach Shocking,
Handling Data Breach,
Cost Data Breach,
Prevent Data Breaches Attack,
Prevent Data Breaches,
Data Breach Notification,
Data Breach Incidents,
Implements Data Networking Security,
Data Breach Survey.
11-hospital system achieves 98% IT asset auditing capability on
mobile computers
Summary
Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Allina Hospitals & Clinics (Allina) is an
11-hospital, 23,000-employee provider of health care services for citizens of Minnesota
and Western Wisconsin. In support of the provider's leading approach to One Patient, One
Record, Excellian electronic health record strategy, Allina makes extensive use of a fleet of
laptop and tablet computers. Having experienced a sharp increase in laptop theft including
one incident requiring public disclosure of breached health information, Allina sought a
high-tech. solution for laptop management and data breach protection. After a review of
available products, Allina selected ComputraceComplete with Remote Data Delete from
Absolute Software. Using Computrace, IT staff have dramatically reduced laptop theft,
recovered several stolen computers and improved laptop auditing accuracy from 30%
to more than 95%. With Computrace as a complement to Allina's Utimaco encryption
system, the provider is confident that it is delivering the highest level of protection for its
laptop computers and the sensitive health information stored on them.
One Patient, One Record
As the state of Minnesota's major healthcare provider, Allina Hospitals & Clinics operates
a system made up of 11 hospitals, more than 75 clinics, 15 community pharmacies, 5,000
physicians and 4 ambulatory care centers. In 2004, Allina began implementing Excellian
One Patient, One Record ' one of America's most comprehensive electronic health
record systems. With the system available across all Allina facilities by 2009, One Patient
One Record makes important medical information about each patient easily accessible to
front-line caregivers.
The Movement Towards Mobility
In another demonstration of technology adoption, Allina is rapidly increasing the number
of portable laptop and tablet computers they provide to nurses, physicians and other
mobile employees to allow for better patient care. However, with the move toward
portable computers, Allina's IT team found that computer theft and the potential of data
breach became an increased concern.
According to Brad Myrvold, the hospital system's Manager of Desktop Technology, "Laptop
computers are a powerful tool in the hands of a physician or a home care nurse. They put
information right at the caregiver's fingertips and streamline administrative processes.
Ultimately, they help our facilities deliver better patient experiences and outcomes. For the
IT team however, they are a challenge. Our existing IT asset management system could
only track assets that are on the network and these devices come back into our facilities at
a fraction of the rate we are comfortable with. While we use Utimaco encryption on all of
our mobile computers, there is always a risk that an unencrypted computer will be stolen.
In fact, it was the theft of an unencrypted computer from a nurse that caused us to seek
out Computrace in the first place."
Data Breach
In early 2007, an Allina nurse stopped her car in front of a hospital facility to run inside and
deliver a time-sensitive package to waiting staff. While she was in the facility, a thief broke
into her car and made off with a laptop ' that contained the health information of several
patients. As a result, the hospital system was required to publicly announce the data
breach and provide credit monitoring services for the affected patients. "This incident was
the event that triggered a change in how we managed portable devices," says Myrvold.
"Since we began to use laptops extensively, we had experienced a sharp increase in
computer theft but this was the first time we had lost a laptop with this type of data on it.
Laptop security was a potential hole in our otherwise robust data security strategy". Two
months after the data breach, Myrvold and his team began implementing Computrace IT
asset management, theft recovery and data protection software on all of Allina's mobile
computers.
Computrace Secures Mobility
"Before Computrace, when we set up a new laptop for a physician or nurse, approximately
70% of the time we literally never saw that computer again. It would go off into our
business units and sometimes returned when it was time for it to be replaced. We had
no insight into what was happening," says Myrvold. "Computrace immediately gave us
visibility into our laptop population. We can see where the laptop is, who is logging in and
what software is installed. It also allows us to verify that the laptop's encryption is up to
our standard ' which is key for regulatory compliance. It has taken us from 30% IT asset
auditing capability to well over 95% on computers that are outside our facilities."
Each time a computer signs into the Allina network, it is automatically checked for device
type. If a new laptop is detected, Computrace is automatically installed. According to Jeff
Weeks, Allina Desktop Programming Senior, "From an administrator's perspective, I have
never seen such a seamless deployment. We automatically deployed more than 2,000
licenses across all of our mobile computers with absolutely no end user or administrator
effort. We now use Computrace to track all of our laptops ' more than 2,700 portable
computers."
How it Works
The Computrace agent that powers ComputraceComplete is supported by a software
agent built into the BIOS1 of each computer during the manufacturing process. This agent
calls into Absolute Software's monitoring center daily to report information such as the
computer's physical location, installed software, virus protection and encryption status ' it
can even report missing hardware. This information populates the Online Customer Center
interface used daily by Allina's IT team.
When a computer equipped with ComputraceComplete is reported stolen, the Computrace
agent sends a silent signal over the Internet to Absolute's Monitoring Center, providing
critical location information. With BIOS support, the Computrace agent is capable of
surviving operating system re-installations, as well as hard-drive reformats, replacements
and re-imaging.
Thefts Continued at Allina Facilities
Thefts continued however. In one particularly noteworthy incident, a thief entered an Allina
facility one Saturday morning and made off with a laptop. The following day, Allina's IT team
watched via the Online Customer Center as the computer went online in nearby Golden
Valley. Shortly thereafter, it shut down again. On Tuesday, Allina staff and Absolute Theft
Recovery Officers were shocked to see the laptop calling home from Vietnam with a new
operating system and the new login credentials "Autoservice" and "Garage". Initially, the
laptop was a challenge to recover given its location and Allina staff began to suspect that
they would receive an Absolute Recovery Guarantee payment in compensation. With some
amusement, Allina staff watched the laptop for more than three months before it abruptly
returned to the United States.
"Most of our computer recoveries have gone incredibly smoothly," says Myrvold. "This
particular recovery was very satisfying for all concerned. Once it was back in the U.S.,
Absolute's Theft Recovery Team immediately led police to the address and it was recovered.
By a stroke of luck, police also found other computers that had been stolen before we had
implemented Computrace on that device."
Next Steps
Allina's future plans include taking
advantage of new functions available
with the latest generation of
Computrace. This includes powerful
new End User Messaging functionality
that will allow Myrvold and his team
to send a message to laptop users
from within Computrace. For instance,
when a computer model is set to be
retired and replaced, the IT team can
send out a message to all users of that
model without using an email system.
According to Weeks, "We've done a
great job of automating the installation
of Computrace on new computers.
Any time we can automate additional
processes that enhance the security of
our computers we're all in favor."
Layered Protection for Data Breach Prevention
With Computrace and Utimaco encryption in place, Allina is able to take advantage
of laptop computers while delivering the highest standard of protection for its laptop
computers and the sensitive information they may contain. "Computrace makes managing
laptops much safer and easier," says Myrvold. "We know immediately if a laptop begins
to drift off our radar and can send the department manager a message asking them to
investigate. If a computer is lost or stolen, Computrace is a lifeline. If we are concerned
about the information on it, we use Computrace to remotely delete it.2 We can also use
Computrace to verify that the computer's encryption was up to standard at the time of the
theft. Finally, we can physically recover the computer ' which puts everyone's mind at rest."
About Absolute Software
Absolute Software Corporation (TSX: ABT) is the leader in Computer Theft Recovery,
Data Protection and Secure Asset Tracking&8482; solutions. Absolute Software provides
organizations and consumers with solutions in the areas of regulatory compliance, data
protection and theft recovery. The Company's Computrace® software is embedded in the
BIOS of computers by global leaders, including Dell, Fujitsu, Gateway, HP, Lenovo, Motion,
Panasonic and Toshiba, and the Company has reselling partnerships with these OEMs and
others, including Apple. For more information about Absolute Software and Computrace,
visit www.absolute.com.
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