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Editors Pick
A case study on protecting sensitive patient data in healthcare's largest independent provider
In healthcare, a single misdirected email can trigger a cascade of consequences: regulatory fines, reputational damage, loss of patient trust, and potential legal action. For Care UK, the stakes couldn't be higher.
Care UK stands as the United Kingdom's largest independent provider of health and social care services, operating more than 300 facilities nationwide. From local GP practices and out-of-hours support to residential care services, the organization touches thousands of lives daily. With this reach comes an enormous responsibility: protecting highly sensitive patient information across a complex communication ecosystem.
Like many healthcare organizations, Care UK had basic Outlook Exchange tools in place to prevent email errors. However, as Barry Nee, Chief Information Officer at Care UK, explains, these solutions fell short of providing the confidence needed when handling patient data.
The data that we deal with is highly sensitive information and the responsibility of ensuring that data is protected is something that is of paramount importance to us, says Nee. \While we can't completely eradicate human error, we can do our utmost to train employees and put an additional layer of protection in place to help prevent mistakes as much as possible.
The reality facing Care UK was sobering: employee error has become the number one cause of data breaches and leakage. With constant email communication involving confidential patient records, medical histories, and personal information, the risk of accidental data exposure was significant and ever-present.
Care UK implemented VIPRE SafeSend across all 3,500 users, creating a comprehensive safety net that addresses multiple vulnerabilities in email communication.
SafeSend requires users to actively confirm external recipients before emails leave the organization. This simple pause creates a critical moment for reflection, catching potential addressing errors before they become data breaches.
Before any email is sent, SafeSend prompts users to verify that the correct attachments are included. This prevents scenarios where sensitive patient files are accidentally sent to the wrong recipient or where confidential documents are attached to routine correspondence.
Care UK configured SafeSend with a list of approved domains. When users attempt to send emails to non-approved domains, the system generates immediate warnings. This feature is particularly valuable in preventing both accidental external sharing and sophisticated phishing attacks.
The Data Loss Prevention module within SafeSend scans both email content and attachments for sensitive information. Care UK leveraged this capability by creating custom regular expressions to detect specific data patterns, including confidential patient information and financial details like bank account numbers.
SafeSend helps users identify sophisticated phishing attempts, such as emails that appear to originate from within the company but actually use cleverly disguised similar domain names. When users attempt to reply to these messages, SafeSend alerts them that the destination is a non-approved domain.
Since implementing SafeSend, Care UK has achieved what every healthcare organization strives for: zero email-related data breach incidents.
We have not had any issues since implementing SafeSend, confirms Nee. I know that if we did or if anything happened, the SafeSend audit logs are there and can be relied upon to track what happened.
Beyond the statistics, SafeSend has delivered something equally valuable: confidence. Care UK's 3,500 users now have the tools they need to communicate safely, knowing that multiple layers of protection are working to catch potential mistakes before they result in data exposure.
For organizations operating under strict regulatory requirements like GDPR and healthcare-specific regulations, SafeSend provides crucial evidence of due diligence. The system creates a documented trail showing that users have acknowledged warnings, confirmed recipient accuracy, and verified attachment correctness.
This audit trail demonstrates that Care UK has implemented appropriate technical controls around Data Loss Prevention, reinforcing their compliance credentials and reducing organizational risk.
What makes SafeSend particularly effective is its recognition of a fundamental truth: humans make mistakes. Rather than simply blocking actions or creating frustrating barriers, SafeSend works with users' natural workflows while adding intelligent checkpoints at critical moments.
As Nee concludes: SafeSend is an important part of our toolkit to help us safeguard patient data and mitigate organisational risk. Human error is natural, but with an automatic reminder to double check and consider whether this information should be sent to this person, we have the confidence that data can remain confidential and secure.
Care UK's success with SafeSend offers valuable lessons for any organization handling sensitive data:
Prevention is More Effective Than Detection - Stopping mistakes before they happen is far more valuable than discovering breaches after the fact.
User-Friendly Security Gets Adopted - SafeSend's integration with Outlook means users don't need to change their workflows or learn new systems.
Layered Protection Works - Multiple verification points create redundancy that catches errors other single-point solutions might miss.
Audit Trails Matter - Complete logs provide both accountability and evidence of compliance efforts.
Custom Rules Enable Precision - The ability to define specific patterns and rules means protection can be tailored to organizational needs.
Email remains one of the most vulnerable channels for data exposure in healthcare and beyond. As Care UK demonstrates, the right tools can dramatically reduce risk while empowering employees to communicate confidently.
Ready to learn how VIPRE SafeSend can protect your sensitive data?
Learn more: https://global.VIPRE.com
