Health care, like many other goods and services consumers use every day, has largely moved online. From prescription notifications to appointment reminders to telehealth consultations, doctors and medical practices routinely communicate with patients via email and websites.
But that convenience may come with a price – the selling and sharing of your private information to marketers and other agencies online.
For once, the federal government seems not only aware of the situation but also willing to take action. Earlier this year the Federal Trade Commission began fining telehealth companies for violating their customers’ privacy, calling online health data collection “problematic” and “widespread.” Existing protections are being updated to put new limits on how any collected data is used and shared.
What About HIPAA?
Most people likely believe that their health information is already secure because of HIPAA guidelines. After all, every time you visit a doctor’s office you have to sign forms on how and to whom this data can be shared.
However, HIPAA only covers patient data collected by insurers and health care providers, like doctors or hospitals. And if you provide information online, such as to a pharmacy, that content can be collected and sold as well.
More help may be on the way: HHS’ Office for Civil Rights issued a bulletin in December, expanding its definition of personally identifiable health information and restricting the use of certain marketing technology. That includes email addresses, IP addresses, and geographic locations. Telehealth provider GoodRx was fined $1.5 million for sharing customer data with Google, Facebook and other firms.
How To Protect Yourself
The idea of your personal and patient information being available on the open market is troubling enough. But even those firms that do not share data may one day be hacked, another way that patient data is exposed. It’s not their fault, but the same damage is done.
Your best option, then, is to limit that damage as much as possible. The information most in demand from hackers and scammers includes your home address, cell phone number, and email. Providing alternatives can protect you if that content is stolen.
- Use a VoIP number. It accepts and forwards calls and text messages, while protecting your actual cell phone number.
- We recommend using alias (disposable) emails that forward to your actual email address without revealing it.
- Mail forwarding allows you to get an alternate address and have some of your mail sent to that address. If that address is leaked and someone heads there to confront you, they won’t find you there.
All of these solutions are available from 360Civic, either together or a la carte, depending on your needs. And our online privacy protection can locate any private data already available, and make sure it is removed.
Start Protecting Your Private Information
