As you probably know, many hospitals, doctors offices and other health care facilities have either already digitized their patients’ medical records or are making plans to do so in the near future.
And if some in the federal government have their way, everyone’s medical records will eventually be accessible to medical personnel via the Internet.
While having your medical history available online would certainly make it easy for a doctor in a far away town to quickly access your records in an emergency, it would also make them vulnerable to hackers and anyone else who would like to get their hands on your sensitive private info for nefarious purposes.
The recent massive Anthem hack has focused attention on the potential dangers of having sensitive medical information stored online.
Luckily the info that was compromised in that attack was of a generic personal nature and not the customers’ actual medical records. But when the medical records themselves eventually go online an entire new world of opportunity will open up for the world’s numerous crooks and thieves.
Personally, I have mixed feelings about making our sensitive medical histories available over the Internet.
There’s no doubt that having our medical info instantly available to any doctor anywhere in the world will result in lives being saved. But there is also little doubt that hackers the world over are salivating at the possibilities.
Exit question: How do you feel about having your medical history available over the Internet? Are you comfortable with the idea?
Image credit: Kurhan