Heartbleed Bug: What It Means For Your Medical Website and Online Services

Ryan Nelson

Ryan Nelson

Posted on April 15, 2014

Heartbleed - web services
You may have heard about the recent Heartbleed Bug that has affected many websites on the Internet.
When we first heard the news, we set out to determine any exposure we may have had and, in turn, any exposure that our clients may have had. It turns out that some of our websites and online solutions were hosted on servers that use the OpenSSL software and were affected.
We immediately started working on a patch, and completed it this past Thursday, April 10. We have no reason to believe that any of our clients were adversely affected, but we have contacted them with instructions on what they need to do, if anything.

What does this all mean for the companies for whom we provide hosting services?

Due to the bug, it is possible that some of the data on clients’ websites could have at some point been compromised, though again, we see no signs that give us reason to believe that any of our clients’ data was taken. Additionally, the majority of our clients’ hosted information does not contain sensitive information or Protected Health Information (PHI).

What about clients using the Bridge Patient Portal, which may contain PHI?

The majority of our Bridge Patient Portal users were not affected. For those that were, we are reaching out specifically with instructions on precautions that should be taken.

As a business owner with a website, do I need to do anything?

If you host a website that contains general information only, you do not need to do anything. If your website has the ability to transmit sensitive information or has a login area of any sort, you should contact your service provider to see if you need to take any precautionary steps. This includes if your site uses a Content Management System (such as WordPress or Drupal), which you can log into from a web browser.
We take security matters very seriously here at Medical Web Experts and are always improving our security and hosting protocols. We understand that your information and the information of your patients is of the utmost importance.
Do you have any questions about how the Heartbleed bug may have affected your website or online services? Feel free to Contact Us.


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