Software security is an important issue and code analysis plays a crucial role in it. The extensive checks of code analysis help expose several code defects. In order to adopt a tool successfully, a coder has to answer several questions and take into consideration various factors.

The first important question a coder must answer is who will be the exact person to use the codes in an organization. Primarily, there are two kinds of users in any setup. The tools will be launched by the associates of the security team. The developers will be the other users who will help develop the tool.

In order to adopt tools quickly in the organization, both the users will have to work mutually. The members of the security team will make use of their experience in risk management, which will help the organization assess security concerns in the long run. Many coders make the mistake of just launching the tools with the members of the security team. This is because the codes are not written by them and as a result they do not have insight as the developers have.

Mainly, the developers have extensive knowledge about specific applications. They are also proficient at handling vulnerabilities of code analysis tools. But, they do not hold the level of expertise required. The security team members have the right exposure in this area.

When the potential code users have been identified in the organization, the next step will be to assess the right time to run the tools. According to various studies, the best time to check the codes is when the coder is writing them.

Moreover, the costs associated with fixing the problems go up with the passage of time which is why it is better to check the codes promptly to identify bugs. In order to do this, the coder can integrate source code analysis on the desktop of the developers so they are able to run analysis on-demand. Many organizations evaluate codes when they are being written, while others do so later.

After the above mentioned tasks have been carried out, it is time to decide on other important details of code analysis. For example, the central authorities can give out respective results. The central group of users will assess the problems for all projects and select the ones that are highly prioritized. There are other options as well which the organization can decide upon as needed.

“I need experience to land a job but I need a job to get that experience” is something often heard from those looking for work in a new field. This dilemma is particularly true when it comes to finding that first job as a medical coder. Job postings often include two requirements: two to three years experience and a current certification. But even if you don’t have the experience or are not yet certified, there are a number of things you can do to greatly improve your chances of being hired.

1. Understand what coding managers are really looking for. Above all, employers are looking for a high level of proficiency. What that means is the ability to work as quickly and accurately as possible. As you move through other ways of getting ready to join the workforce, keep in mind that proficiency is your foremost goal. Time is money and an accurate coder can save huge amounts of time (not to mention headaches) for their employer.

2. If you are not certified, show that you are seeking certification. If you have convincing proof that you are preparing for a particular certification exam (study materials, knowledge of what is on the exam, location and dates of exams) it will carry extra weight during any interview process.

3. Get some real world experience online. There are a number of websites that contain sample reports you can take a run at. Another alternative, and one that is gaining popularity, is Practicode, which provides hundreds of actual cases (with all personal information removed) that you can work through to increase your proficiency while you gain experience coding real world cases. Practicode provides proof of your coding abilities in the form of a report you can show potential employers.

4. Find a way to serve an apprenticeship or internship. AAPC has a program they call Project Xtern. They state: “Project Xtern was designed to match newly certified coders with facilities willing to give them field experience.” The key to this program is you must be certified in a certain area of coding and an AAPC member.

If you are not certified, consider contacting a healthcare employer in your town and introduce the idea of serving them as a coding intern. With a little bit of effort, and if you can demonstrate confidence in yourself and enthusiasm for becoming a coder, you might be able to convince them to take you on as an intern.

5. Be specific about your education. The key here is to focus on the kind of study that gives you the best chance of getting hired. Pinpoint what you need. Don’t take “too wide a sweep” in your education by spending time on study that has no real effect on improving your chances of getting hired.

6. Consider specializing in one area of coding. This could be the best decision you make. It will allow you to focus all your energy in one area and pinpoint your job search. When it comes to finding work, knowing a lot about one area of coding, rather than knowing a little about coding in general, may be the key to finding work. And specializing makes the whole process much less overwhelming.

Although it seems a bit daunting at first, there are a number of things you can do to improve your chances of landing that first medical coding job.

Once you have completed your medical billing and coding education, it would be wise to get at least one of the certifications available for individuals in this field. Employers love to see certifications because it shows that the person they are considering hiring has at least a basic level of knowledge in the field. Most certifications require you to pass an exam and then either retake the exam or take continuing education courses in order to keep your medical billing and coding certification current.

The majority of the certifications available are administered by the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). Those who have completed a Bachelor’s degree are eligible to test for the Registered Health Information Administrator (RHIA) certification. Those who have completed an Associate’s degree can test for the Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT) certification.

AHIMA Certification

The most entry level medical billing and coding certification option available from AHIMA is the Certified Coding Associate (CSA) certification. This does not require the coder to have a lot of experience. Once the coder has a bit more experience, they can then try for the Certified Coding Specialist (CCS) or Certified Coding Specialist – Physician Based (CCS-P) certification through taking an exam. There is also a CHPS (Certified in Healthcare Privacy and Security) credential for those who are more advanced coders.

Board of Medical Specialty Coding Certification

Medical billing and coding certification is are also available from the Board of Medical Specialty Coding. Those with at least two years of coding experience can qualify for the Specialty Coding Professional (SCP) certification, and those with three to five years experience can qualify for the Advanced Coding Specialist (ACS) certification. There is also a Home Care Coding Specialist – Diagnosis (HCS-D) certification available through this organization.

AAPC Certification

The American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) offers four different options for medical billing and coding certification as well, depending on the area where you work. You are usually required to have two years work experience, but those without this can get Apprentice Certification status upon passing the required exams for the certifications. The certifications are Certified Professional Coder (CPC), Certified Professional Coder-Hospital (CPC-H), Certified Professional Coder-Payer (CPC-P), and Certified Interventional Radiology Cardiovascular Coder (CIRCC).

PAHCC Certification

Finally, there is also a Professional Association of Healthcare Coding Specialists (PAHCC) that offers certifications for those who are involved in specialty coding. The options include Cardiology (CCCS), ENT (CENTCS), Family Practice (CFPCS), Gastroenterology (CGCS), General Surgery (CGSCS), Internal Medicine (CIMCS), Obstetrics & Gynecology (COBGCS), Orthopedics (COCS), Pain Management (CPMCS), Pediatrics (CPEDCS), Podiatry (CPODCS), Pulmonology (CPCS), and Urology (CUCS).

First things first: A rough list of the places you can find the freelancers you need for your outsourced projects.

The best and most effective place to start is simply to search on the internet using popular search engines such as Google, MSN, Yahoo or ASK. If your outsourced project requires a freelance php coder or a flash expert then simple searches for “freelance php coder” is a very direct approach to finding a wide variety of freelancers who would be willing to take on your project. However this kind of approach may leave you stuck for choice, as it is bound to give you millions of results.

The next step may be to decide if you need the freelancer to be completely web-based or local to you.

…

With this new found knowledge you should be able to apply these methods to your own requirements and get finding those freelancers quickly and easily.

Hopefully you will have a better basic understanding of how to find the contract freelancers you require by reading this article.

Copyright(c) 2006 – Liam Twose

Medical coding is a job that requires copious research and razor sharp concentration, and some coders struggle with work environments in which it is hard to do both.

I recently talked with one coder who codes complex surgeries at a nationally reowned university health system that will remain nameless. She works in one of four cubicles crammed into a tiny office that holds 4 coders. Her desk can not hold a monitor AND her coding books.

To make things worse, surgeons are constantly squeezing in to answer questions, so she is often struggling to concentrate in the noise that 4 coders and 5-6 clinicians can make in the tiny space.

She hopes to move offices soon but in the meantime, wears headphones a lot and is looking into coding reference software so she does not have to shuffle around books.

Paying attention to your work space may seem like a little thing, but it can be an important step towards improving your coding accuracy. She suggests you ask your supervisor to support your coding excellence by providing the following:

1. A quiet corner … away from all communal technology. If you can not have your own little space, ask for the most remote corner in the back of the back office. Stay away from hallways, the copy machine, and the fax machine.

Clinicians and staff understand that you are smart and resourceful, so they will be tempted to rope you into solving toner problems instead of working to get the reimbursements that pays their paychecks.

2. Time away from the phone. Many coders take on phone duty for part of the day, but do not expect to code accurately during your phone duty times. If your supervisor puts you on the phone during busy times, encourage her to let you set out your 'coding time' for pure coding. You simply can not focus on an op report if you are constantly interrupting your train of thought to answer calls.

When news broke out of the third major ransomware outbreak of the year, there was lots of confusion. Now the dust has settled, we can dig down into what exactly "Bad Rabbit" is.

As per the media reports, many computers have been encrypted with this cyber-attack. Public sources have confirmed that Kiev Metro's computer systems along with Odessa airport as well as other numerous organizations from Russia have been affected. The malware used for this cyber-attack was "Disk Coder.D" – a new variant of the ransomware which is frequently run by the name of "Petya". The previous cyber-attack by Disk Coder left damages on a global scale in June 2017.

ESET's telemetry system has reported numerous occurrences of Disk Coder. D within Russia and Ukraine however, there are detections of this cyber-attack on computers from Turkey, Bulgaria and a few other countries as well.

A comprehensive analysis of this malware is currently being worked upon by ESET's security researchers. As per their preliminary finds, Disk Coder. D uses the Mimikatz tool to extract the credentials from affected systems. Their findings and analysis are ongoing, and we will keep you informed as soon as further details are disclosed.

The ESET telemetry system also informs that Ukraine accounts only for 12.2% of the total number of times they saw Bad Rabbit infiltration. Following are the remaining statistics:

Russia: 65%

Ukraine: 12.2%

Bulgaria: 10.2%

Turkey: 6.4%

Japan: 3.8%

Other: 2.4%

The distribution of countries was compromised by Bad Rabbit accordingly. Interestingly, all these countries were hit at the same time. It is quite likely that the group already had their foot inside the network of the affected organizations.

It's definitely ransomware

Those unfortunate enough to fall victim to the attack quickly realized what had happened because the ransomware is not subtle – it presents victims with a ransom note telling them that their files are "no longer accessible" and "no one will be able to recover them without our decryption service ". Victims are directed to a Tor payment page and are presented with a countdown timer. Pay within the first 40 hours or so, they're told, and the payment for decrypting files is 0.05 bitcoin – around $ 285. Those who do not pay the ransom before the timer reaches zero are told the fee will go up and they'll have to pay more. The encryption uses DiskCryptor, which is open source legitimate and software used for full drive encryption. Keys are generated using CryptGenRandom and then protected by a hardcoded RSA 2048 public key.

It's based on Petya / Not Petya

If the ransom note looks familiar, that's because it's almost identical to the one victims of June's Petya outbreak saw. The similarities are not just cosmetic either – Bad Rabbit shares behind-the-scenes elements with Petya too.

Analysis by researchers at Crowdstrike has found that Bad Rabbit and NotPetya's DLL (dynamic link library) share 67 percent of the same code, indicating the two ransomware variants are closely related, potentially even the work of the same threat actor.

The attack has hit high profile organizations in Russia and Eastern Europe

Researchers have found a long list of countries of have fallen victim to the outbreak – including Russia, Ukraine, Germany, Turkey, Poland and South Korea. Three media organizations in Russia, as well as Russian news agency Interfax, have all declared file-encrypting malware or "hacker attacks" – being bought offline by the campaign. Other high-profile organizations in the affected regions include Odessa International Airport and Kiev Metro. This has led the Computer Emergency Response of Ukraine to post that the "possible start of a new wave of cyber-attacks to Ukraine's information resources" had occurred.

It may have had selected targets

When WannaCry broke, systems all across the world were affected by an appropriate indiscriminate attack. Bad Rabbit, on the other hand, may have targeted corporate networks.

Researchers at ESET have backed this idea up, claiming that the script injected into infected websites can determine if the visitor is of interest and then add the contents page – if the target is seen as suitable for the infection.

It spreads via a fake Flash update on compromised websites

The main way Bad Rabbit spreads is drive-by downloads on hacked websites. No exploits are used, rather visitors to compromised websites – some of which have been compromised since June – are told that they need to install a Flash update. Of course, this is no Flash update, but a dropper for the malicious install. Infected websites – mostly based in Russia, Bulgaria, and Turkey – are compromised by having JavaScript injected in their HTML body or in one of their.js files.

It can spread laterally across networks

Like Petya, the Bad Rabbit Ransomware attack contains an SMB component which allows it to move laterally across an infected network and propagate without user interaction.

The spread of Bad Rabbit is made easy by simple username and password combinations which it can exploit to force its way across networks. This list of weak passwords is the often-seen easy-to-guess passwords – such as 12345 combinations or having a password set as "password".

It does not use EternalBlue

When Bad Rabbit first appeared, some suggested that like WannaCry, it exploited the EternalBlue exploit to spread. However, this now does not appear to be the case. "We currently have no evidence that the EternalBlue exploit is being utilized to spread the infection," Martin Lee, Technical Lead for Security Research at Talos told ZDNet.

It contains Game of Thrones references

Whoever it behind Bad Rabbit, they appear to be a fan of Game of Thrones: the code contains references to Viserion, Drogon, and Rhaegal, the dragons which feature in television series and the novels it is based on. The authors of the code are therefore not doing much to change the stereotypical image of hackers being geeks and nerds.

There's steps you can take to keep safe

At this moment in time, nobody knows if it is still possible to decrypt files that are locked by Bad Rabbit. Some might suggest to pay the ransom and see what happens … Bad idea.

It's quite reasonable to think that paying nearly $ 300 is worth paying for what might be very important and priceless files, but paying the ransom almost never results in regaining access, nor does it help the fight against ransomware – an attacker will keep targeting as long as they're seeing returns.

A number of security vendors say their products protect against Bad Rabbit. But for those who want to be sure they do not potentially fall victim to the attack, Kaspersky Lab says users can block the execution of file 'c: windows infpub.dat, C: Windows cscc.dat.' in order to prevent infection.

Medical coding is the process in which medical coders assign numerical codes to medical diagnoses and procedures in order to bill insurance companies for reimbursement for healthcare services.

For medical billing and coding, there are three main coding manuals, which contain all of the possible codes that a medical coder can include on a claim for reimbursement. They are:

• ICD-10: International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, which refer to diagnosis codes.

• CPT: Current Procedural Terminology, which refer to procedures and services performed on the patient.

• HCPCS: Healthcare Common Procedural Coding System, which refers to the rest of the miscellaneous supplies and medicines supplied to the patient in the healthcare setting.

Coders combine these three sets of codes on insurance claims and then send them to insurance companies for reimbursement. Here’s what they’re used for:

• ICD-10 diagnosis codes are used to explain to the insurance company why the patient came in for healthcare services.

For example, the code J02.9 represents the diagnosis pharyngitis, or sore throat. When the coder places the code J02.9 on the medical claim, it tells the insurance company that the patient was seen because they were complaining of a sore throat.

• CPT, or procedure, codes, tell the insurance company what procedures were performed on the patient on the day that they were seen.

For example, the code 99213 is used to represent a typical office visit. When the coder includes the code 99213 on the claim, it tells the insurance company that the medical provider performed a mid-range office visit.

• HCPCS, or supply codes, are used to represent all of the other miscellaneous services or supplies given to a patient on the day they were seen.

These codes are not always included on a claim form because they include supplies or other services that are not included in the CPT book, such as ambulance transportation or durable medical equipment.

Medical providers only bill for CPT and HCPCS codes because they represent actual services and supplies given to the patient.

Each code is given an individual charge, and is separately reimbursed by the insurance company. This means that providers don’t bill for and insurance companies won’t pay for diagnosis codes.

Due to the nature of medical coding, it is easy to accidentally (or purposely) code for the wrong things. This is considered fraud or abuse and is a very serious offense, which can be punishable by fines and even jail time.

Because of this, it’s important for coders to create safeguards against medical coding fraud and abuse.

A good education in medical terminology and proper coding also helps the coding process go much more quickly and allows coders to manage more clients.

Usually, doctors code for their own claims, but medical coders have to check the codes to make sure that everything is billed for and coded correctly. In some settings, medical coders will have to translate patient charts into medical codes.

The information recorded by the medical provider on the patient chart is the basis of the insurance claim. This means that doctor’s documentation is extremely important, because if the doctor does not write everything in the patient chart, then it is considered never to have happened.

Furthermore, this data is sometimes required by the insurer in order to prove that treatment was reasonable and necessary before they make a payment.

Often, the doctor or hospital will have a pre-determined set of commonly reported codes, called a superbill, or encounter form. This is a billing form that includes all of the commonly reported diagnosis and procedure codes used in the office.

This helps the doctor and medical coder report the correct codes. This complex medical billing software allows the medical biller to send the claims directly to the insurance companies.

Insurance companies base their payments on the codes they receive from the medical provider.

The codes reported tell the insurance company which treatments were performed on the date of service, the day the doctor saw the patient. The insurance reviews the codes and the patient’s benefits, and determines the payment amount.

The codes reported also allow the insurance company to quickly deny payment based on treatments that are not covered. Insurance companies will also deny claims if they are not coded correctly, according to the rules of the ICD-10, CPT, and HCPCS manuals.

If you're thinking about entering the field of medical billing and or coding and wonder how long it takes to become a medical biller or billing specialist, the following information should answer your question.

There are many ways you can get your education as a medical biller. You can go to on-campus schools in your area or you can take medical billing training online either from nationally recognized schools or colleges or online through online courses or schools or other programs

Because of the variety of methods you can use to become a biller there are several ways to achieve it all with varying degrees of length and time.

If you were to take the shortest course of action it would be through an online school most likely where you can plan to do it in about 60 hours or so of study. This would be without national certification which is not necessary to becoming a medical biller but if you want to be guaranteed more recognition in the field. Also you might want to find out from local medical billing services if they hire without the certification. Many do and some may not, especially if there's a lot of competition in your area.

In fact you want to check out just what jobs are available before you even considering getting any training to make sure you're in a city that offers billing services to doctors' offices, clinics and other health-related clients.

Assuming you do, then you might call some of these potential employers and find out if they hire medical billers without national certification but with education and no experience if you do not have any in the field already.

One you know you have job possibilities then you can decide whether you should take a long or shorter course of action. The national certification following taking and passing the national exam would give you a Medical Billing Specialist certificate.

You can choose a longer course of action but it may be better to invest in a shorter course if that's acceptable. Many schools suggest or try to get you to sign up for courses that are not necessary such as medical terminology. You may not need it. As for coding, coding has already been done in the doctor's offices or client's offices before claims reach the billing services. Coding is a separate function from billing.

Coding requires totally different training and you should follow the guidelines here for checking out coding also.

So you may be best off taking the cheapest and shortest possible medical billing course that offers all you need to do your job properly. There is federal and financial aid available too. Make sure to research any program thoroughly before you go ahead. There may be some scams operating and you want to avoid the problems that brings.

Last week, we talked with Pamela Biffle CPC, CPC-I, CHCC, CHCO, who gave us some tips for acing the exam. She taught us so much, we’re back for more.

But first, a fun fact: Biffle is so passionate about coding she actually collects vintage CPT manuals, and her collection dates back to the groovy 1970s! You can be sure someone with that level of dedication to our profession has some good advice, so here are her 4 tips:

1. Make sure you have a sound coding foundation before you take an exam prep class

Three-day CPC exam training camps like Coding Cert.com aren’t designed to teach you coding from scratch, Biffle stresses. If you don’t have some coding knowledge before you begin the class, it won’t do you much good.

Instead, she and her fellow instructors aim to teach you how to take the test and help you fill in your coding knowledge gaps. If you’re unsure about whether you’re ready to take an exam prep training camp, you can contact a friendly customer service rep at CodingCert.com. She’ll ask you some screening questions to help you judge whether you’re ready and whether a class is a good investment for you.

2. Come up with your OWN mnemonics, or tools for remembering things

A mnemonic is an acronym or phrase that helps you remember important facts. For example, the orthopedic coding editor at Supercoder.com uses the mnemonic “Students Like The Professor To Teach Complex Hypotheses” to remember the carpal bones: Scaphoid, Lunate, Triquetral, Pisiform, Trapezium, Trapezoid, Capitate, Hamate.

But even the cleverest memory tool won’t help you unless it makes sense to you, Biffle stresses.

3. Mark up your manual as you study

We’ve discussed this general technique often on My Coding Career, and Biffle has some particularly clever tips. Example: Using the Physician Fee Schedule, mark all the codes in your CPT manuals that can take modifier 26. This is a long list of codes, so use a stamp to quickly move through your book. Students who take Biffle’s class get her list of modifier 26 codes, so they don’t have to wonder during the exam.

4. Exam Room Time Management Tip:

Complete the shortest questions first. All the questions on the exam are worth the same number of points, whether they are one-liners you can read in a flash or longer coding scenarios that take you several minutes to plow through. So you can rack up the most points if you complete the shortest questions first.

When you first get your test, find all the short answers in your test booklet first and answer them if you can, Biffle suggests. Then move to 2-line questions, and so on. Then, go to the longer op note and coding scenario questions later, starting with the specialties you’re most comfortable with.

Now that we are fully aware of the benefits and advantages of medical coding, I believe that many of you out there have the urgent urge to get your hands around this field because of the great prospect which this job might bring them in the future. However, before any harsh decision is made from your end, it would definitely be worth-while for us to review and understand what are on the other side of medical coding? There are always pro and cons in almost everything, therefore it is beneficial for us to review and understand both sides of medical coding for good.

Below are some of the key common disadvantages which have been shared for medical coding;

1. Difficult to be breaking into this medical field. This is especially true if you are a fresh graduate with a certificate or degree in medical coding looking for your first job. Most employers preferred medical coders with experiences because they can save up some extensive training cost and time required to provide hands-on trainings to the new hire. Thus, it is really a challenge for new hire with less or no experience in this medical field to gain their market value and competitiveness.

2. Once you find your way into the coding world, it is up to the respective personnel to make it to the top or stay where they were as in the start. It is the diligence and effort from the individual himself which will drive him to succeed as a great medical coder or otherwise. However one thing about medical coding is that anyone who wishes to be a medical coder will need to be patience, hardworking and possess of self-discipline during the process of becoming a qualified medical coder. There is no short cut in getting your way into the related coding field except going through the proper path of education and training which require at least 2-3 years to obtain the prestigious certification to lead your career path to be a successful professional medical coder.

3. Relocation is one of the option to advance in your career as a medical coder. However relocation can be an advantage for some people while at the same time it can be a disadvantage for others. Not everyone is willing to move to a brand new city or town with unfamiliar faces and places for his career advancement. Therefore, relocation can be a disadvantage for medical coders who are staying together with their family.

4. As the name of the profession tells it all, any students in this coding field have to deal with a lot of coding and abbreviations. It can be pretty torturing if you are not good in memorizing words or names and it can turn out to be a terrible nightmare for anyone who has to give up on his/her medical coding education because of the complexities in remembering and digesting the coding required to excel in the medical coding field.

5. It is very normal for medical coders to be working for long hours in the hospitals, clinics, doctor offices or even in the insurance companies. There are a serious lacking of work-life balance for most of the medical coders today.

6. Also, medical coding is a stressful job considering the accuracy that these medical coders will need to enforce in their job because any mistakes made will lead to no payments or long pending claims from the insurance companies itself.