HIPAA-compliant cloud storage complies with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) to ensure the security of healthcare patients’ data stored on remote servers accessed from the internet.
HIPAA governs how healthcare providers and their business associates, as defined in the Act, can store, manage, and share personal health information (PHI). If you’re a healthcare provider (or a cloud storage provider working with a healthcare provider), it’s important to understand how HIPAA applies to cloud storage.
With the rising popularity of services like iCloud and Dropbox, many people and companies have become more comfortable with cloud storage. There’s no question these services are convenient; being able to access universally synced data anytime, anywhere, from any device, is incredible.
But that doesn’t mean these services are HIPAA-compliant. HIPAA introduces particular requirements that not every cloud storage provider satisfies.
Don’t make the mistake of assuming that a particular cloud storage option will comply with HIPAA. Storing your data “in the cloud” can make it difficult to achieve the level of security required of healthcare.
Here’s what you need to know about cloud storage to make sure your data is safe and sound — and HIPAA-compliant.
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