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The outrage people feel about this sort of thing always feels misplaced since it assumes that their data is currently being safe guarded properly and that DeepM

The outrage people feel about this sort of thing always feels misplaced since it assumes that their data is currently being safe guarded properly and that DeepMind/Google having it would somehow lead to worse outcomes. Hospitals routinely get hacked by the most bottom of the barrel mass malware. I doubt small practices are any better, though I guess they may still have paper files. I had a work experience gig for a week when I was ~14 in a hospital, and in an effort to try to occupy me they gave me an access database on 50k people including things like HIV status to mess around with.

rubatuga 9y ago
Yeah, but when hospitals get hacked and if they are just following security protocols set out by the government, the only people to really blame are the hackers. Also what does the fact that you got to see patient data have to do with anything? Didn’t you sign forms saying you wouldn’t disclose patient information? (HIPA) Also, as if you had the authorization to conduct any sort of research or studies on them. What’s so hard to understand about following laws? And why are you implying that the reason people are concerned is due to the safety of their data? It doesn’t matter if Google has their data, or a shitty hackable hospital has it, it shouldn’t be used in any clinical studies without approval.
- Eridrus 9y ago
  The discussion seems to focus on privacy, the article mentions this. Given DeepMind didn't do any trials, I'm not sure how that is relevant. Labelling statistical analysis as a "trial" seems like it's own farce.
- KekDemaga 9y ago
  >Yeah, but when hospitals get hacked and if they are just following security protocols set out by the government, the only people to really blame are the hackers. I'd argue the regulators are also to blame.
a_imho 9y ago
Anyone having your medical records is bad, especially Google ymmv. I'm sure you can imagine ways how they can abuse it from making shadow profiles, target people with med ads, not to mention they are having leverage on the competition not having access to the same data.
TeMPOraL 9y ago
> Hospitals routinely get hacked by the most bottom of the barrel mass malware. If only that. A close acquaintance of mine who I won't name worked in a big hospital in Poland for a while, and told me some horror stories related to data practices; I think it's enough to say that they could take out a lot of patient data, even by accident, and no one would notice. Given the ease of it happening, I'm pretty sure the data is already circulating somewhere.
lumberjack 9y ago
I think there is a difference between having your medical data accessed by some Bulgarian cyber mafia and having it accessed by Google. Maybe I'm crazy, but I think my data in the hands of Google would be more harmful to me. I mean, next think you know my health insurer in some not very developed country that I have to move to for work, comes to find out about my past medical history and raises my premium and deductible. I find it more plausible that they would get the information from Google than from some shady Bulgarian cyber mafia.
- mtgx 9y ago
  > I think there is a difference between having your medical data accessed by some Bulgarian cyber mafia and having it accessed by Google. Not if the Bulgarian cyber mafia hacks Google to steal that data. Okay, Google has super-ultra security and it's never been hacked (a false statement), but even so, how many companies have Google's security? I think you can barely count them on one hand. I completely expect drug cartels, for instance, to hack into organizations holding user data any time they want. If Google is easily allowed access to this data, then a dozen other companies with much weaker security will also be allowed access to it.
- hayd 9y ago
  lol, you're crazy.
mbesto 9y ago
I've done due diligence on 50+ software companies and the worst offenders of data security are definitely healthcare software providers.
- jacquesm 9y ago
  Have you also looked at government / semi government? I've looked at all three and I'd be more than happy to list those two as being far worse at their data security than healthcare software providers. Caveat: Europe.
  - mbesto 9y ago
    Ah yes, didn't mention government, but to your point I have not looked as many gov't as I have HC.

rubatuga 9y ago

Yeah, but when hospitals get hacked and if they are just following security protocols set out by the government, the only people to really blame are the hackers. Also what does the fact that you got to see patient data have to do with anything? Didn’t you sign forms saying you wouldn’t disclose patient information? (HIPA) Also, as if you had the authorization to conduct any sort of research or studies on them. What’s so hard to understand about following laws? And why are you implying that the reason people are concerned is due to the safety of their data? It doesn’t matter if Google has their data, or a shitty hackable hospital has it, it shouldn’t be used in any clinical studies without approval.

Eridrus 9y ago
The discussion seems to focus on privacy, the article mentions this. Given DeepMind didn't do any trials, I'm not sure how that is relevant. Labelling statistical analysis as a "trial" seems like it's own farce.
KekDemaga 9y ago
>Yeah, but when hospitals get hacked and if they are just following security protocols set out by the government, the only people to really blame are the hackers. I'd argue the regulators are also to blame.

a_imho 9y ago

Anyone having your medical records is bad, especially Google ymmv. I'm sure you can imagine ways how they can abuse it from making shadow profiles, target people with med ads, not to mention they are having leverage on the competition not having access to the same data.

TeMPOraL 9y ago

> Hospitals routinely get hacked by the most bottom of the barrel mass malware. If only that. A close acquaintance of mine who I won't name worked in a big hospital in Poland for a while, and told me some horror stories related to data practices; I think it's enough to say that they could take out a lot of patient data, even by accident, and no one would notice. Given the ease of it happening, I'm pretty sure the data is already circulating somewhere.

lumberjack 9y ago

I think there is a difference between having your medical data accessed by some Bulgarian cyber mafia and having it accessed by Google. Maybe I'm crazy, but I think my data in the hands of Google would be more harmful to me. I mean, next think you know my health insurer in some not very developed country that I have to move to for work, comes to find out about my past medical history and raises my premium and deductible. I find it more plausible that they would get the information from Google than from some shady Bulgarian cyber mafia.

mtgx 9y ago
> I think there is a difference between having your medical data accessed by some Bulgarian cyber mafia and having it accessed by Google. Not if the Bulgarian cyber mafia hacks Google to steal that data. Okay, Google has super-ultra security and it's never been hacked (a false statement), but even so, how many companies have Google's security? I think you can barely count them on one hand. I completely expect drug cartels, for instance, to hack into organizations holding user data any time they want. If Google is easily allowed access to this data, then a dozen other companies with much weaker security will also be allowed access to it.
hayd 9y ago
lol, you're crazy.

mbesto 9y ago

I've done due diligence on 50+ software companies and the worst offenders of data security are definitely healthcare software providers.

jacquesm 9y ago
Have you also looked at government / semi government? I've looked at all three and I'd be more than happy to list those two as being far worse at their data security than healthcare software providers. Caveat: Europe.
- mbesto 9y ago
  Ah yes, didn't mention government, but to your point I have not looked as many gov't as I have HC.