It's 10:42 a.m., and a scheduled video consult is under way. Then a cyber incident takes the hospital network offline. The session drops, and it can't resume until systems are restored. For a growing number of hospitals, this isn't a hypothetical scenario. It's why telehealth security has become a patient safety issue, not just an IT one.
The scale of the problem
The latest data shows how common this has become. In Proofpoint and the Ponemon Institute's 2026 healthcare report, 97% of U.S. healthcare organizations surveyed experienced at least one cyberattack in the past 12 months. Of those, 74% reported a disruption to patient care (Proofpoint).
Attacks are also becoming more frequent and more costly. The average organization faced 51 attacks, up from 43 the year before, and the most expensive attack cost an average of $4.2 million, up nearly 8%.
As more care moves to video, from consults and virtual observation to interpreter access, telehealth security now directly affects how reliably patients are treated.
Why the supply chain matters for telehealth security
Supply chain attacks are among the most disruptive. In the same research, 90% of organizations affected by a supply chain attack said it impacted patient care, and cloud or account compromises disrupted care for 65% (HIPAA Journal).
Video platforms sit within that same supply chain. A hospital's video vendor, the cloud it runs on and the systems it connects to are all part of the risk picture. Strong telehealth security means looking at the video layer as carefully as the EHR.
Five steps to strengthen telehealth security
1. Map your video environment. Document every video workflow, from consults and observation to interpreting and training. Record where each one runs (on-premise, in the cloud or through a vendor), who manages it, and what it connects to. You can't protect what you haven't mapped.
2. Encrypt media and signaling. Every call has two parts: the media (audio and video) and the signaling that sets up the call. Protect both, for example with SRTP for media and TLS for signaling, and ask each vendor which protocols they use.
3. Restrict access to every session. Use secure session tokens so only authorized participants can join, and host controls to admit or remove people. Avoid reusable open links for clinical sessions.
4. Define recording storage and retention. Before anyone presses record, decide where recordings are stored, who can access them and how long they're kept. Align this with your existing records retention policy.
5. Include video vendors in your risk assessment. Review each vendor's security documentation and long-term viability, since a forced migration means new security reviews and new risk. Agree a contingency plan for how care continues if a service fails.
How Vidyo supports secure video care
No platform can prevent every cyberattack. What the right platform can do is give your team the control and visibility to build telehealth security into everyday care. Vidyo supports each of the steps above:
- Flexible deployment. Run Vidyo on-premise, in a private cloud or as a hybrid, so your organization controls where video runs.
- Built-in encryption. Calls are protected with SRTP media encryption, TLS and HTTPS signaling with industry-standard PKI, and encrypted session tokens.
- Access controls. Host and co-host controls and participant moderation help keep sessions limited to the right people.
- Recording control. Store recordings on-premise, in the cloud or as a hybrid.
- Reliable on constrained networks. Scalable Video Codec adjusts to available bandwidth in real time, so call quality holds up when networks are under strain.
- Compliance and long-term support. Vidyo is HIPAA and GDPR compliant, supported 24/7, and backed by Enghouse Systems, an enterprise software company with more than 35 years in the market.
Building resilience into telehealth security
Resilience is most effective when it's planned before an incident, not after. Start by mapping your video environment, then work through encryption, access, recordings and vendor risk. Each step makes your telehealth security stronger, and keeps patient care running when it matters most.
At Enghouse Video, we believe communication should work as naturally as the healthcare teams using it. Our solutions help organizations maximize their healthcare technology investments by supporting secure virtual care, clinical collaboration, enterprise video management, and connected communication across the healthcare environment. As hospitals continue looking for practical ways to modernize, the organizations that achieve the greatest success will not necessarily be those making the largest investments. They will be the ones making the smartest use of the healthcare technology investments they have already made.
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