As 2013 draws to a close, it has become clear that every major industry maintains sensitive data, and has been targeted by hackers. This year ushered in a new batch of highly publicized data breaches that affected millions of consumers, many of whom became the victim of identity fraud. From an enterprise standpoint, these breaches not only eroded consumer trust, but they also open businesses to fines, penalties, and class-action lawsuits for not properly securing private data.
Based on the increasing volume of data businesses now manage, and the growing capabilities of cyber criminals, I expect the following scenarios to become more commonplace in 2014:
ID thefts to target: Affordable Care Act
Medical identity fraud is a lucrative source of income for perpetrators who bill for fraudulent medical services or obtain insurance, government benefits or prescription drugs. Medical fraud endangers patients’ health and costs consumers millions of dollars each year. While hospitals and providers will remain targets of criminal rings seeking personal health information, newly created health insurance exchanges under the Affordable Care Act create new security risks for millions of Americans.
