Safend Case Study: ConnectiCare Health Insurance

ConnectiCare knows health insurance. As one of the fastest-growing HMOs in Connecticut, the company provides insurance coverage to more than 270,000 individuals in their home state, western Massachusetts, and four counties of New York. A large customer base is great for ConnectiCare’s bottom line, but managing a lot of sensitive information can be difficult for the IT department. While today’s technology makes storing data easier than ever before, keeping that data secure given the multitude of PC entry points presents unique challenges that demand innovative solutions.

Safeguarding private information is more than just good business practice; it is also a requirement for health insurance providers who wish to remain HIPAA compliant. “While maintaining the privacy of our customers has always been a high priority for us, HIPAA has been a major driver of our current security policies,” states Bill Liston, IT Solutions Technician for ConnectiCare.

Until two years ago, the potential security threat posed by peripheral connections was not really an issue for ConnectiCare. “We were using Windows NT, which did not support some of the devices we’re concerned with now. However, we decided to upgrade to XP and with the upgrade came the potential problems,” says Liston. “Simply telling more than 500 people not to use their USB ports was just not a realistic solution.”

After speaking with an external auditor, Liston decided to take the proactive approach of finding a security solution that not only protected sensitive information from outside theft or tampering but that would also stand up to HIPAA guidelines. Safend Protector met ConnectiCare’s criteria.

“I’m not aware of any other software that performs like Safend Protector,” Liston commented. “We ran the free USB Auditor tool, which is fantastic, and demoed USB Port Protector. Then we were told, ‘there’s more’ and we got a chance to use the newest solution, Safend Protector.”

Safend Protector, available through resellers internationally, controls data access from the physical ports of all enterprise endpoints, such as USB, FireWire, WiFi, Bluetooth, Infrared (IrDA), and CD/DVDs. Safend Protector operates at the kernel level, allowing IT managers to set granular policies regarding peripheral device connectivity. Anti-tampering features make modifying or removing the software virtually impossible for end-users, resulting in Safend Protector achieving the rank of most comprehensive endpoint security solution available.

Liston agrees, “I didn’t have to shop around. Safend Protector gives us what we need to maintain the privacy and integrity of our client information.”

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