Article summaries and takeaways for readers of The Dental IT Brief. Dates are source-article publication dates, rather than evidence of email delivery. Available Spanish summaries link to complete English articles.
Absolute Dental’s 2025 data incident and the proposed $3.3 million class-action settlement have attracted attention across the dental industry. The settlement amount is not an HHS fine, does not represent a confirmed technical cost of the incident, and should not be treated as an independent finding that any particular party caused the breach. Publicly available reports nevertheless provide a useful case study in third-party access, trusted software, privileged accounts, monitoring, segmentation, recovery, and the shared responsibility between a dental organization and its technology providers.
By Dental IT Team
Key takeaways
The public record should be discussed carefully: the proposed settlement is not an OCR penalty or a technical finding that establishes fault.
Third-party accounts and trusted support tools need the same or stronger identity, monitoring, approval, and least-privilege controls as internal administrative access.
No single product can guarantee prevention; layered controls can reduce the likelihood of compromise, limit lateral movement, improve detection, and reduce the amount of data exposed.
The HIPAA Security Rule modernization discussed throughout the health care industry in 2026 is not currently a final rule. HHS issued the proposal on December 27, 2024, and it was published in the Federal Register on January 6, 2025. As of July 28, 2026, HHS continues to identify it as a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. The existing HIPAA Security Rule remains in effect. Dental practices should therefore distinguish between current legal obligations, proposed future requirements, and cybersecurity improvements that may be sensible to implement before a final rule is issued.
By Dental IT Team
Key takeaways
The Security Rule modernization remains proposed as of July 28, 2026; the current HIPAA Security Rule remains in effect.
If finalized substantially as proposed, the rule would add specific expectations involving encryption, multi-factor authentication, asset inventories, network maps, annual risk-analysis review, vulnerability scanning, penetration testing, and recovery planning.
Dental practices can prepare without claiming premature compliance by improving inventories, risk documentation, MFA, encryption, backups, vendor governance, and incident-response readiness now.
Microsoft will end extended support for Windows Server 2016 on January 12, 2027. Until that date, supported installations remain eligible for security updates under Microsoft’s lifecycle policy. After the deadline, standard security updates and technical support will no longer be available unless the organization qualifies for and purchases an applicable Extended Security Updates option. For dental practices, this is not simply an operating-system upgrade. The server may host Dentrix, Eaglesoft, Open Dental, imaging databases, shared documents, domain services, backups, integrations, and other systems that must be migrated in the correct order.
By Dental IT Team
Key takeaways
Windows Server 2016 extended support ends January 12, 2027, so practices should complete discovery and compatibility planning well before the deadline.
A dental server migration must account for the practice management database, images, shared files, connected devices, software bridges, backups, permissions, and vendor support requirements.
Using an unsupported operating system is not automatically described by HIPAA as a standalone violation, but unpatched vulnerabilities must be identified and addressed through the practice’s risk analysis and risk management process.
The best managed IT provider for a dental practice is not simply the company with the longest service list or the lowest monthly price. Your decision should reflect how the provider will protect patient information, support dental software and imaging workflows, reduce downtime, coordinate with vendors, recover critical systems, and help the practice make better technology decisions over time. This buyer’s guide gives practice owners and managers a practical framework for comparing IT partners without relying on vague promises.
By Dental IT Team
Key takeaways
Choose a provider based on documented capabilities, service ownership, security practices, recovery readiness, and dental workflow experience rather than price alone.
Require clear answers about response times, escalation, backups, incident handling, vendor coordination, business associate responsibilities, onboarding, and contract exit terms.
Use a weighted scorecard and the same questions for every provider so the final decision reflects the practice’s operational risks and growth plans.
Technology touches almost every part of a dental office: scheduling, imaging, charting, treatment planning, billing, phones, forms, cybersecurity, backups, and patient communication. When technology is slow, unreliable, or poorly supported, the entire practice feels it. The right IT support partner helps prevent downtime, protect patient data, and keep your team focused on patient care.
By Dental IT Team
Key takeaways
Dental offices need IT support that understands dental software, imaging systems, operatories, and compliance-sensitive workflows.
Managed IT support should include proactive monitoring, cybersecurity, backup checks, vendor coordination, and fast help desk support.
The best dental IT partner helps prevent recurring issues instead of only reacting when systems go down.
Choosing between a local server and cloud hosting is one of the most important infrastructure decisions an Open Dental practice can make. The right setup affects software performance, remote access, imaging integrations, cybersecurity, backups, monthly costs, and what happens when the internet or server goes down. Neither option is automatically better for every dental office. The best choice depends on your locations, workflows, internet reliability, connected equipment, growth plans, and ability to maintain the environment.
By Dental IT Team
Key takeaways
A local Open Dental server offers greater on-site control and may keep core software available during an internet outage, but the practice is responsible for server maintenance, security, and backups.
Cloud hosting can simplify remote and multi-location access while reducing on-site server upkeep, but performance and availability depend heavily on reliable internet and a properly managed hosting environment.
The decision should account for imaging systems, third-party integrations, backup responsibilities, recovery expectations, connectivity, security, costs, and future growth.
