HIPAA, the “Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996,” provides federal protection of patient health information. As part of our continuing efforts to educate employees, these HIPAA-related messages will be distributed the second and fourth Tuesday of the month.
Today’s HIPAA message is about opening e-mail attachments.
Question
Is it okay to open e-mail attachments?
Answer
Yes, but with caution. E-mail attachments should only be opened from known individuals or organizations. It is very common for computer viruses to be spread via e-mail attachments. Computer viruses can be very damaging to your workstation and can affect the network capability. In order to protect your workstation, ensure your virus protection software is up to date. For questions, please contact the ITS HelpDesk (9-7700).
Hand washing will not control the spread of this type of virus!
The HIPAA implementation team thanks all members of the organization who have made the implementation of the HIPAA activities successful. A celebration will take place from 1-4 p.m. on Thursday, June 12, in the courtyard between Swanson Hall and the visitor parking structure.
If you’re a manager, please ensure all of your employees are informed of the contents of these messages and how it applies to your work area. Some ways of sharing the information include discussions during staff meetings, printing and posting this message or asking your employees if they have any further questions.