New Tape Storage Could Cure Privacy IllsNew Tape Storage Could Cure Privacy Ills

Although the HIPAA regulations will take effect in April, there's still a lot of patient data that isn't private or secure, according to Quantum Corp.

The storage vendor says it has a solution: the DLTIce technology it recently unveiled. The digital linear tape works with existing tape infrastructure and provides the kind of security found in disk drives because it uses write once, read many (or Worm) archiving. It also includes management software that makes it easier to find stored information.

Engineers and product management reps from Qauntum's digital linear tape group showcased the DLTIce product last week at the TechXNY show in New York. The Worm capability for existing media could be very important to the health-care industry. Better records management and security are long overdue, according to Stephen Maccaux, a Quantum DLT product manager of storage devices. The industry, still moving from film such as microfiche to electronic data capture, badly needs storage policies and equipment to protect and secure patient records, he says.

An independent data-management analyst expects the health-care industry to embrace Worm technology for the sake of patent privacy and security and as a data backup plan, but it make take some time. Says Peter Gerr, an analyst at IT research firm Enterprise Strategy Group: "Health care is still notoriously years behind technology curves."