Azure PHI Exposure Remediation

Why It Matters

The core goal is to quickly remediate every identified PHI exposure within your Azure environment, ensuring that protected health information is properly secured before regulatory violations occur. Fixing PHI exposures in Azure is critical for organizations subject to HIPAA, as it helps you maintain patient privacy and avoid costly penalties from unauthorized access to healthcare data.

Primary Risk: Data exposure of protected health information

Relevant Regulation: HIPAA Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act

Swift remediation ensures patient privacy protection, maintains regulatory compliance, and prevents potential data breaches that could result in significant financial and reputational damage.

Prerequisites

Permissions & Roles

Azure Security Administrator or Owner role
Storage Account Contributor permissions
Key Vault Administrator access
Azure Policy Contributor role

External Tools

Azure CLI or PowerShell
Cyera DSPM account
Azure Security Center access
API credentials for automation

Prior Setup

Azure subscription configured
PHI exposures identified and prioritized
RBAC policies reviewed
Backup and recovery plan in place

Introducing Cyera

Cyera is a modern Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) platform that discovers, classifies, and continuously monitors your sensitive data across cloud services. Using advanced AI and natural language processing (NLP) for entity recognition, Cyera automatically identifies PHI patterns in unstructured healthcare data and provides automated remediation workflows to quickly secure exposed protected health information in your Azure environment.

Step-by-Step Guide

Assess and prioritize PHI exposures

Review the PHI exposure inventory from your detection scan. In Cyera, navigate to Data Inventory → Findings and filter by PHI classification. Prioritize based on exposure severity, data volume, and public accessibility.

az storage blob list --account-name [account] --container-name [container] --query "[?properties.publicAccess]"

Implement immediate access controls

Remove public access from storage containers with PHI. Update blob storage access policies and configure private endpoints. Apply network security groups and firewall rules to restrict access to authorized healthcare systems only.

az storage container set-permission --name [container] --public-access off

Apply encryption and key management

Enable encryption at rest using Azure Key Vault for all PHI storage locations. Configure customer-managed keys (CMK) for additional control. Implement encryption in transit for all data movement operations.

az storage account update --name [account] --encryption-services blob --encryption-key-source Microsoft.Keyvault

Configure monitoring and alerting

Set up Azure Monitor and Security Center alerts for future PHI access patterns. Configure Cyera's continuous monitoring to detect new exposures and automatically trigger remediation workflows for similar incidents.

Architecture & Workflow

Azure Storage & Databases

Primary locations containing exposed PHI

Azure Security Center

Security posture monitoring and recommendations

Cyera Remediation Engine

AI-powered automated fix workflows

Azure Key Vault

Encryption key management and access control

Remediation Flow Summary

Identify Exposure → Apply Access Controls → Enable Encryption → Monitor & Alert

Best Practices & Tips

Immediate Actions

Disable public access first
Document all changes for audit trails
Test access controls before full deployment

Long-term Security

Implement defense-in-depth strategies
Regular security assessments
Staff training on PHI handling

Common Pitfalls

Not testing applications after access changes
Overlooking backup and archive locations
Insufficient monitoring post-remediation

References & Further Reading

Next Steps

🛡️ Prevent: Implement PHI protection controls 🔍 Detect: Continuously monitor for PHI exposures