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  • Care Home Cyber Security

Data Protection & Cyber Security with a Human Touch

Care homes hold some of the most sensitive data: medical records, medication charts, family details. Sadly, cybercriminals know this too. Across the UK, agencies like the DVLA and NHS suppliers are fighting off millions of daily cyber threats and care homes are not immune.

CYBIONE helps you keep resident data secure, stay compliant with GDPR, and meet standards like Cyber Essentials and NHS DTAC.

Protect your care home

What matters most for care homes

GDPR & Data Privacy

Protecting resident dignity by safeguarding records.

SARs & Right of Access

Helping you handle sensitive requests safely.

Cyber Essentials & NHS DTAC

Build trust with regulators and commissioners.

Staff Training

Simple awareness training for carers, nurses, and admin staff.

Safe Systems & Wi-Fi

Securing your care management software without disrupting daily operations.

Reassurance with Stats

The NCSC saw double the number of nationally significant cyber incidents this year compared to last. With AI-driven attacks growing, the social care sector needs to be proactive. CYBIONE gives you peace of mind, so you can focus on care.

👉 Protect your residents, Protect your reputation

Let CYBIONE secure your care home.

2x

Increase in Cyber Incidents

100%

Resident Data Protected

GDPR

Compliance Assured

NHS

DTAC Ready

cyber essentials requirements for care homes - FAQs

Cyber Essentials is a government-backed certification that helps care homes protect themselves from common cyber attacks. It demonstrates a commitment to data security and is crucial for protecting residents’ sensitive information.

Cyber Essentials is a UK scheme that sets out five key technical controls to protect organisations against a wide range of basic cyber threats. For a care home, its importance is twofold: first, it provides a robust framework to safeguard the highly sensitive personal and health data of residents and staff, which is a key legal requirement under GDPR and the Data Protection Act. Secondly, achieving certification provides assurance and builds trust with residents, their families, and commissioners, proving that the care home takes data security seriously and has a good baseline of protection in place.

Data security is critical because care homes handle highly sensitive “special category” data, including residents’ health, medical, and personal information. Protecting this data is a legal requirement under the UK GDPR and is essential for maintaining the trust of residents and their families.

Care homes and nursing homes are entrusted with some of the most private and vulnerable information an individual has. This includes medical records, personal details, and even financial data. A data breach could lead to severe harm to residents, including identity theft and a loss of privacy, and could result in significant legal and financial penalties for the organisation. Furthermore, failing to protect this data can cause a complete breakdown of trust with the very people you are caring for, which is a fundamental aspect of the care sector.

Cyber Essentials provides a foundational layer of technical security that aligns directly with the “security” principle of the UK GDPR. By implementing its five controls, you can significantly reduce the risk of a data breach, which is a key part of your legal obligation.

The UK GDPR does not prescribe specific technical solutions but instead requires that organisations implement “appropriate technical and organisational measures” to secure personal data. The five controls of the Cyber Essentials scheme—firewalls, secure configuration, user access control, malware protection, and patch management—are a recognised and effective set of measures for protecting against common cyber threats. While certification alone does not guarantee full GDPR compliance, it provides demonstrable proof to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and other regulators that you have a robust baseline of security in place to protect sensitive data.

You must immediately contain the breach and report it to your internal data protection lead. If the breach poses a risk to a resident’s rights and freedoms, you are legally required to report it to the ICO within 72 hours.

The first step in a data breach is to act quickly to contain it and prevent further damage. You should follow your internal incident response plan to identify what data has been compromised and how the breach occurred. If the breach is likely to result in a risk of harm to the individual, you must report it to the Information Commissioner’s Office within 72 hours. This is particularly important for sensitive patient data, as the risk of harm is often considered high. You should also be prepared to notify the affected residents and their families directly, providing clear advice on what to do next to protect themselves. Documenting every step of your response is vital for accountability.

Patient data must be shared securely through encrypted channels. You should have clear policies on who can access and share data, and staff must be trained to use approved methods, such as secure email or dedicated platforms, to protect confidentiality.

The sharing of patient data is a common and necessary part of providing care, but it must be done with extreme caution. Under GDPR, you must have a legal basis for sharing the information and ensure it is done securely. This means using encrypted platforms like NHSmail or other approved secure file transfer services, rather than standard, unencrypted email. Your staff should be fully trained on the correct procedures and understand the legal and ethical implications of sharing data. It is also important to have a clear audit trail of all data sharing to ensure accountability and to be able to respond to a resident’s “right to know who has accessed their data” request.

Yes, if your care home or nursing home routinely and systematically processes “large scale” volumes of sensitive patient data, you are legally required to appoint a Data Protection Officer to oversee your data protection strategy and compliance.

The UK GDPR mandates the appointment of a DPO for organisations whose core activities involve the “large scale processing of special categories of data.” For most care and nursing homes, the handling of resident health and social care records falls into this category. The DPO acts as an independent advisor, helping to monitor internal compliance, advising on data protection impact assessments, and serving as a contact point for the ICO and individuals. Even if your organisation is not legally required to have a DPO, appointing a competent person to take on this role or using a “DPO as a Service” can be highly beneficial for ensuring that your data protection practices remain robust and compliant.