When Email Encryption Laws AREN’T an Issue; Is Encryption Necessary?
If your business isn’t directly affected by email encryption laws, or you’re not sending patient information, client information or other sensitive data via email; is email encryption a good idea? One can argue that email encryption does have its place even outside the boundaries of email encryption laws, and here are some situations where it could come in handy:
- Some email encryption services allow for additional storage, which means you can store significantly bigger emails using encryption than normal email services.
- What about storing sensitive emails in some kind of encrypted storage? Receipts from bills, messages from your bank/credit union, etc.?
Utilizing email encryption, even if not directly related to a business, can be a very smart decision. Check to see what kind of options are out there, even if you don’t know why you would use it now doesn’t mean you may not need it tomorrow!
HIPAA & Email Encryption Laws – Hand in Hand?
HIPAA stands for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and every medical facility is intimately familiar with all the rules and regulations that definite the act. How do email encryption laws have to do with HIPAA? More than you would think...
It is specifically stated in the Security Rule, under the Technical Safeguards, that (bold emphasis and PHI definition added):
"Information systems housing PHI (protected health information) must be protected from intrusion. When information flows over open networks, some form of encryption must be utilized."
What’s the most commonly used way of communicating over open networks? Email. According to HIPAA law, some type of encryption must be utilized to safeguard PHI.
As medical offices begin to transition to electronic health records and moving away from file cabinets to files online, encryption of this data needs to become a priority. With the recent addition of the HITECH (Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health) Act, the necessity of companies needing encryption has expanded. It now goes beyond the realm of medical institutions and applies to companies that exchange information with medical organizations!
The next time your company reviews the email encryption laws that apply to them in their industry, make sure to pay attention to HIPAA. You may very well need encryption because of the importance of safeguarding PHI.
Email Encryption Laws in Nevada
Slowly but surely states are bringing their own legislation to the table. This blog takes a look at the specific email encryption laws for the state of Nevada. Even if your company isn’t located in Nevada, you could very well work with a company that is or have clients that live in the state.
High-Stakes Only At Las Vegas For The Silver State
Sending personal information via email is risky. Emails are intercepted, and if that email contains personal information, it can lead to identity fraud and more. This prompted the state of Nevada to require the encryption of all transmissions for all business that send personal information over the Internet.
The wording used in the actual law NRS 597.970:
A business in this State shall not transfer any personal information of a customer through an electronic transmission other than a facsimile to a person outside of the secure system of the business unless the business uses encryption to ensure the security of electronic transmission.
Even if your business is not located in Nevada, if you have companies you exchange information with or have clients in that state, you had better brush up on your email encryption laws and invest in an email encryption service.
Be Compliant For All Email Encryption Laws, Look For These Email Encryption Features
There are many different email encryption service providers which offer their services to email users. When shopping around for an email encryption service provider, there are a few features which you should search for in particular. Some of these include the following:
- Easy to use encryption method;
- Policy-based encryption;
- Digital signatures;
- Integration methods for email compliance;
- Reasonably priced email encryption solution;
- Adequate levels of email encryption security;
- Ability to be used with a number of email applications.
Whichever features you hold to be more important than another, make sure the company you work with can vouch for complete compliance with all the email encryption laws that apply to you because of the following variables:
- Industry;
- State;
- Information transmitted in electronic communications;
- Workplace environment.
By searching for an email encryption service which offers these previously mentioned items, you will be able to gain access to an email encryption service which offers all that you need in order to send email safely and efficiently.
Email Encryption: Laws To Protect Your Virtual Mail
The Internet and email access are two pieces of technology which very few of us can live without these days. It provides us with the means to communicate with others and gather extremely helpful information, frequently in a matter of seconds. With that said, Internet users have to be cautious when going online and sending emails, especially with regard to sensitive material. One of the ways to protect against violation of our email information is to use email encryption solutions. An email encryption platform allows us to send emails securely without fear that outside prying eyes can see our documents.
Why We Need Email Encryption
Many people believe that when they send out emails, they go directly to the recipient's email address. Although many times this is true, there are other times when computer hackers can access these emails simply by intervening and redirecting the emails. Email encryption allows the emails to be safely sent to those desired recipients and not opened up by other Internet users. This is especially important with regard to consumer information, credit card information and other pieces of sensitive material.
Email Encryption Laws You Should Know: Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act
If your company stores or sends personal information, you need to know the email encryption laws that may apply to your company. This blog post will look at the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, and discuss what this monumental legislation means to your company.
Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA)
GLBA, which was introduced on November 2, 1999, were new privacy laws regulating what you are allowed to do with confidential personal information. In other words, it governs how personal information is collected, used and most importantly for email encryption, maintained. The law requires that companies adopt a written policy for handling confidential personal information as well as distribute the policies properly.
The Act also prohibits the sharing of an individuals’ personal information with non-affiliated third-parties except:
- When individuals are told their information will be shared with others;
- When individuals are given the opportunity to tell you not to share their information;
- When an individual does not "opt out" of disclosure to third parties.
What does this mean for email encryption?
Simply, if personal information is contained in an email, when sent, that email should be sent via an encrypted method.
Further details on other email encryption laws to come in future blog postings!
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