Pharmacy Cyber Security Health Check — Self-Assessment Tool

Your patients trust you with their medications and their most sensitive health information. Are you protecting it?

Pharmacies hold an extraordinary combination of sensitive data — dispensing records, Schedule 8 controlled drug logs, PBS claiming credentials, prescription histories, Medicare details, and live connections to e-prescription exchanges and Real-Time Prescription Monitoring. The Privacy Act and Australian Privacy Principles require you to safeguard this information, AHPRA's Code of Conduct expects pharmacists to take reasonable steps to protect patient confidentiality, and state and territory poisons legislation requires continuous, accurate Schedule 8 records. A breach doesn't just trigger OAIC investigations and financial penalties — it can affect your registration, your PBS claiming authority, and the customer trust your pharmacy has built over years.

This Health Check gives you a clear picture of where your pharmacy stands — and a practical action plan to close the gaps. No IT background needed.

Built for pharmacy owners and pharmacists-in-charge, not IT professionals: Every question is written in plain, everyday English. Technical terms include built-in hover tooltips that explain them simply, and the companion user guide explains the intent behind every question so you always understand what's being asked and why.

When you're done, the tool generates a clear, easy-to-follow action plan tailored to your pharmacy. Each recommendation tells you what the gap is, what to do about it, how urgent it is, and roughly how much time and money it will take — automatically sorted by priority. No guesswork, no generic advice — just practical steps based on your actual answers.

What's included:

1. Self-Assessment Tool (HTML file) An interactive assessment covering 12 key security areas across 65 questions, purpose-built for how Australian pharmacies actually work: → Passwords & Access — Are PBS Online, eRx Script Exchange, MediSecure, RTPM, and dispensing software properly secured? → Backups & Recovery — Could you recover dispensing data and your Schedule 8 register after ransomware or hardware failure? → Staff Awareness — Do your dispensary and front-counter team know how to spot phishing and prescription fraud? → Patient Data Protection — Are dispensing records, My Health Record access, and patient profiles handled in line with the Privacy Act? → Incident Response — Do you know what to do if dispensing systems are compromised or the S8 register is affected? → Suppliers & Services — Are your dispensing software vendor, wholesaler portals, banner group systems, and IT providers covered? → Plus six more domains covering updates, security software, device security, network protection, secure configuration, and leadership planning.

2. User Guide & Question Reference (Word document) A comprehensive companion guide including: → Step-by-step instructions for navigating the assessment and using all features → Tips for answering accurately — what "Yes" really means and how to think about evidence → How to interpret your results — understanding your score, readiness level, and priority actions → How to use the Word and Excel exports for compliance, insurance, and IT provider discussions → Full question reference guide — every question explained with "Why This Matters" context and "Evidence to Look For" indicators

What you get when you complete the assessment: 

✔ Overall security score with a clear readiness rating

✔ Visual dashboard with category-by-category breakdown

✔ Prioritised action plan — personalised to your answers, sorted by urgency, with estimated time and cost

✔ Specific, actionable recommendations written in plain language

✔ Exportable Word report — ready to share with banner groups, professional indemnity insurers, or your IT provider

✔ Exportable Excel workbook with incident response contacts and step-by-step checklist

✔ Australian-focused — references the AHPRA Pharmacy Board, Services Australia (PBS), state poisons legislation, OAIC, ACSC, Privacy Act, Notifiable Data Breaches scheme, and Real-Time Prescription Monitoring

Who is this for?

• Pharmacy owners wanting to benchmark and improve their security posture
• Pharmacists-in-charge looking to protect their patients and their pharmacy
• Pharmacies preparing for compliance reviews, banner audits, or cyber insurance applications
• Multi-site operators wanting a consistent baseline across every store
• Independent community pharmacies wanting to demonstrate due diligence
• Anyone handling dispensing records or controlled drugs — regardless of technical ability

How it works: 

Download both files — open the HTML file in any modern browser and keep the user guide handy.

Answer the questions honestly, and the tool does the rest. No installation, no software, no cloud account required. Your data stays on your device.

Built by CyberAssure — practical cyber security tools for Australian businesses.