A grounded explanation of how technology systems support HIPAA compliance and what organizations must implement to avoid exposure.

Compliance goes beyond paperwork

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requires covered entities and business associates to protect sensitive health information—both in storage and in transit. While policies and training are essential, technology plays a central role in meeting compliance requirements.

That role is often misunderstood. HIPAA doesn’t mandate specific vendors or tools, but it does require organizations to implement safeguards that meet its security rule standards. These aren’t suggestions—they’re baseline expectations.

The key technical safeguards

HIPAA’s security rule outlines three types of safeguards: administrative, physical, and technical. For IT teams, the technical safeguards are the most operationally relevant. These include:

• Access control: Ensuring only authorized users can access systems containing electronic protected health information (ePHI)

• Audit controls: Maintaining logs that track who accessed data, when, and what actions were taken

• Integrity controls: Preventing unauthorized alterations to data

• Transmission security: Encrypting ePHI when it’s sent over a network

• Authentication: Verifying that a person or system accessing ePHI is who they claim to be

These controls must be in place whether the data resides on local servers, in cloud platforms, or within third-party systems. Organizations are responsible for all systems that store, process, or transmit ePHI.

Common gaps that lead to risk

HIPAA violations often result not from deliberate negligence, but from incomplete implementations. Some organizations have access control in theory but no system to enforce it. Others have encryption enabled for email but not for backups. Logging is sometimes enabled, but logs are not retained or reviewed.

Another common gap is vendor oversight. Organizations may assume that using a HIPAA-compliant cloud service transfers responsibility—but HIPAA requires shared responsibility. If your configuration is weak or unmonitored, the liability remains yours.

Without regular assessments and technical documentation, it’s difficult to prove compliance or detect violations. That lack of visibility can become a serious risk during a breach investigation.

Compliance is ongoing, not one-time

HIPAA compliance is not a certification or a product—it’s a posture. Systems evolve, staff change, and threats adapt. Maintaining compliance requires continuous oversight, regular risk assessments, and active remediation when gaps are found.

Organizations that treat HIPAA as a living requirement—integrated into IT operations rather than siloed in policy documents—are better positioned to stay compliant and avoid penalties.

A grounded look at how insurance carriers assess cybersecurity preparedness—and what legal practices should have in place.

Cyber insurance is now a business standard

As cyberattacks on law firms continue to rise, carriers have tightened underwriting requirements. Premiums have increased, exclusions are more common, and claims are scrutinized. Carriers now expect firms to demonstrate that they understand the risks and have implemented basic controls.

This shift reflects the growing overlap between IT infrastructure and professional liability. A firm’s ability to secure data, respond to incidents, and prove that reasonable precautions were in place directly affects insurability.

What carriers often expect to see

Most applications today include security questionnaires or require attestations. Law firmsLegal & Law Firms are often asked to provide evidence of:

• Multifactor authentication (MFA) for email, remote access, and administrative logins

• Regular offsite backups with test logs and recovery capabilities

• Endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools deployed across systems

• Documented incident response plans and basic staff training

• Email filtering or threat protection services

In some cases, carriers conduct external vulnerability scans. An exposed remote desktop port, an unpatched system, or a misconfigured mail record can influence underwriting decisions—or halt the process entirely.

Insurance exclusions tied to cybersecurity failures

What’s changing is not just how carriers evaluate risk, but how they assign blame. A growing number of policies include language that limits or voids coverage if required security controls were not implemented at the time of the incident.

For example, if a law firm suffers a breach and cannot show evidence of functioning MFA, an active backup, or a basic monitoring system, the carrier may deny the claim. These denials typically cite misrepresentation or failure to meet policy conditions.

Preparing for review and renewal

Firms that have not recently evaluated their security posture should consider doing so well before the next renewal. This may involve updating internal documentation, replacing outdated tools, or reviewing coverage language to understand what’s required.

Security standards are no longer a suggestion—they are a prerequisite for coverage. Law firms that treat cybersecurity as a compliance issue, rather than a technical one, will be better positioned to maintain coverage and reduce exposure.

When your systems go down, it’s more than just a tech issue — it’s a business problem. Whether it’s a server crash, a network outage, or a ransomware attack, downtime costs you in ways that go far beyond IT. Lost productivity, missed sales, frustrated customers, and damage to your reputation all add up. And for many businesses, the impact starts immediately.

You don’t have to be a massive enterprise for downtime to hit hard. Even a few hours of disruption can throw off your entire team, delay projects, or put you at risk of non-compliance if you’re in a regulated industry.

How Downtime Happens

Downtime doesn’t always come from catastrophic events. Sometimes, it’s caused by something as simple as an expired SSL certificate, a failed software update, or an overlooked hardware issue. Other times, it’s more serious — like ransomware encrypting your files or cloud systems being unavailable when you need them most.

Most businesses aren’t prepared. They assume “we’ll cross that bridge when we get there,” until they get there — and realize they don’t have a plan.

What It’s Really Costing You

Downtime impacts your bottom line more than you may realize. It stops your team from working, disrupts customer communication, and can even cost you clients who need consistent service. It also puts pressure on your employees to recover quickly — and sometimes forces costly last-minute fixes.

Here are just a few of the ways downtime hits:

• Lost productivity from employees who can’t access systems or tools

• Missed revenue from interrupted sales, bookings, or transactions

• Reputation damage if customers experience delays or poor service

• Data recovery costs if files or systems need to be restored

• Compliance penalties if sensitive data is affected and reporting is delayed

Most of these losses aren’t visible until after the fact — and by then, they’re expensive.

How to Minimize the Risk

Avoiding downtime isn’t about eliminating every possible failure. It’s about having the right systems and safeguards in place so that if something does happen, it’s brief, contained, and recoverable.

That means having secure backups, keeping systems updated, monitoring hardware and network health, and putting a disaster recovery plan in place. It also means knowing who to call when something breaks — and having a team that can respond fast.

Get a Free Risk Assessment

Want to know how exposed your business might be to a downtime event? Cost+ offers free evaluations to help you identify gaps, risks, and opportunities to strengthen your IT systems before anything goes wrong.

Book your free risk assessment today and protect your business from the unexpected.