Security in the Digital Revolution
Digital transformation in the life sciences sector creates real opportunity. Companies are moving into hyper-connected ecosystems as research and development (R&D) becomes more global and interconnected. New or diversified business models are being created across the life sciences marketplace. Pharmaceutical, biotech, consumer-oriented and other entrants are taking advantage of market dynamics. Moreover, person-driven, data-oriented approaches are driving real healthcare improvements. Health data “everywhere” enables life sciences firms to improve research on new formularies and off-label use of current drugs.
For all the opportunity they create, these trends also pose significant cyber risk, affecting the ability of companies and customers to achieve the full benefits of this changing marketplace. Ongoing life sciences consolidation — marked by mergers and acquisitions, carve-outs, divestitures and joint ventures — enables companies to innovate, replenish their drug pipelines, sell off noncore franchises and position themselves in key therapeutic areas. However, these new relationships also come with significant cybersecurity concerns such as differing security standards between companies and integration risks.
Companies must protect the validity, confidentiality and reliability of systems, data, transactions, management processes and ecosystem hand-offs. Without robust cybersecurity protecting underlying systems and ecosystems, pharmaceutical firms and other organizations can never fully rely on research and reported results.
The good news: powerful solutions already exist to address cybersecurity in the life sciences environment. Secure network architectures and next-generation encryption help protect sensitive communications. New security mechanisms are available for converged IT and operational technology systems. Careful, pre-defined dynamic protections can be implemented for valuable IoT devices that enable real-time insights into consumer behaviors. Machine- and deep learning-based analytics (“cognitive systems”) promise great benefits — but only if data is reliable, protected and running on secure systems.
Read the full paper to learn more about:
- Cybersecurity challenges and opportunities in life sciences
- Characteristics of an effective cybersecurity posture
- The ways in which a more secure environment enables organizations to trust information, expand relationships and fully engage in new ways of doing business