The Best HIPAA-Compliant Email Providers

Healthcare providers must comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). It is a U.S. federal law that establishes a set of guidelines and regulations to protect the safety, integrity, and availability of the Protected Health Information (PHI) of your patients.

As PHI is sensitive and can infringe on the patient’s privacy and security, you must take all measures to secure your communication with patients. Moreover, patients must have the right to access their data and decide how they want it to be communicated. Violations of any of these aspects can lead to non-compliance which will eventually result in hefty fines.

To avoid these fines and the responsibilities that come with securing PHI in emails, many healthcare providers prefer using HIPAA-compliant services.

The best HIPAA-Compliant Email Providers are as follows:

1. Egress An intelligent email security service that comes with mechanisms like anti-phishing, data loss, revocation, smart authentication, and more. It is designed to keep all emails safe and HIPAA compliant.
2. LuxSci An email service that offers end-to-end encryption to protect sensitive data from unintentional exposure. It also enables you to securely communicate with patients while protecting your sensitive data.
3. Hushmail A proprietary web-based email for HIPAA compliance. It also supports web forms and e-signatures and supports the transmission of authenticated and encrypted emails in both directions.
4. Identillect A secure email service that provides complete control to the sender while ensuring compliance with HIPAA and other security regulations. It also integrates seamlessly with M365, Gmail, and more.
5. Paubox A HIPAA-compliant email suite that works well for organizations of all sizes. It is easy to set up and comes with excellent support.
6. ProtonMail An email provider known for its security and privacy, ProtonMail provides complete control with end-to-end encryption. Its add-ons like Calendar, Drive, and VPN also come in handy.
7. MailHippo A secure email service for sending and receiving emails and attachments. It is 100% HIPAA-compliant.

Why Use HIPAA-compliant Email Providers?

According to HIPAA, covered entities are healthcare providers including doctors, nurses, dentists, and other practitioners, health insurance plans, and healthcare clearinghouses. Other entities that agree with these covered entities through a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) are called business associates.

These business associates are those who store, process, and handle PHI or any other data that can identify a specific patient. These associates also have to comply with HIPAA requirements. Email service providers are business associates and they enter into a BAA with insurance providers.

When it comes to emails, HIPAA does not lay any explicit rules except that the emails must conform to its Security and Privacy laws. Unfortunately, most Internet-based emails like Gmail are not secure and do not fully cover these Privacy and Security laws. This is where specialized email services are necessary.

As a healthcare provider, when you choose a HIPAA-compliant email service, it is deemed that you’ve taken all necessary precautions to protect the transmission of ePHI. In case of a data breach, the business associates face fines.

Due to this advantage, many healthcare providers prefer to choose a secure and HIPAA-compliant email provider. However, not all providers are the same. You must look for aspects like

• A clear definition of each party’s responsibility.
• The permitted PHI used by business associates.
• The measures taken by the provider to ensure that PHI is not used or disclosed beyond the terms of the BAA.
• Availability of appropriate safeguards like encryption, logging, authentication, audit trails, archiving, and more.

Our Methodology

Our methodology for evaluating email providers:

• The security aspects like advanced encryption (preferably AES or OpenPGP algorithms),
• Location of servers that store or transmit the emails.
• It does not log or track data.
• Availability of email expiration options.
• Level of HIPAA compliance.
• Usability and validation checks that are in tune with the HIPAA rules.

Best HIPAA-Compliant Email Providers

Let’s now take a deeper look at each of these tools.

1. Egress

Egress is an advanced email service provider that uses an adaptive security model to prevent any unauthorized user from accessing an email. It uses AI to generate contextual information to prevent social engineering attacks like phishing. Also, it detects and prevents abnormal human behavior.

Source:  Egress

It comes with the following features.

Adaptive Security Model

The highlight of Egress is its adaptive security model that identifies threats as they emerge and adapts to meet them. Moreover, it continuously evaluates human behavior and dynamically adapts policy controls to meet these changes. It also leverages contextual machine learning and neural networks to provide enhanced email protection.

Risk-based Policy Management

Egress automates threat detection and response to provide tailored controls for each employee. It also provides actionable steps that every employee can take to ensure that the emails they send are HIPAA-compliant. Moreover, Egress creates a risk score for each threat and changes them to meet their evolving nature. This way, employees know what they are up against.

Awareness Training Programs

In addition to monitoring and preventing threats, Egress also provides awareness and security training programs for your employees. This program educates them on potential threats and how they can stay away from them. In particular, it can help with identifying social engineering attacks.

Besides the above aspects, Egress provides AES-256 encryption, complete email revocation options, smart authentication, audit logs, SSO, and custom email security policies to ensure HIPAA compliance.

Request a demo.

2. LuxSci

LuxSci offers comprehensive services like emailing specific ePHI, sending mass emails as a part of a marketing campaign, SMTP connections, and more. It also offers hosting and secure PDF form solutions for safe data collection and transmission that meet HIPAA guidelines.

Source: LuxSci

Below are some important LuxSci features that help with compliance.

Bulk Emails

Sending bulk or broadcast emails is tricky because it exposes the email IDs of different patients in the same email. Though you can technically use the BCC option to ensure that one patient doesn’t know the details of others, you don’t hide the email ID completely. If hackers or someone with technical expertise assesses this email, they can get the email IDs from the BCC field. However, LuxSci has a secure mechanism to enable you to send bulk emails.

Integrates with Google and Microsoft

LuxSci encrypts all outgoing emails originating from Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 to help with compliance. Essentially, it secures the SMTP connector for your existing email, so you can continue to use the familiar platform.

Scalable and Flexible

With many agile encryption options, LuxSci strengthens the security posture of your email activities. At the same time, it provides a lot of flexibility to adapt to emerging business requirements and security guidelines. LuxSci is scalable as well as it uses block architecture to change with your growing needs.

In addition, LuxSci also securely hosts emails and supports using secure forms to collect data from your patients. It supports PGP and S/MIME encryption, login audit trails, spam protection, tamper-proof archiving, and more.

Request a demo.

3. Hushmail

Hushmail is a popular service for sending encrypted emails, web forms, and e-signatures. It uses OpenPGP encryption and two-factor authentication to secure your email communications. With this platform, you can use unlimited email aliases and archiving along with custom domain names.

Source: Hushmail

Here’s a look at the important Hushmail features.

Encrypted Emails

When you sign up for Hushmail, every employee in your organization gets a secure email account with built-in encryption. Every email sent from the email account is encrypted. Moreover, you can use your domain and connect with the Hushmail server to send and receive encrypted email attachments.

Web Forms

Another advantage of this tool is its secure web forms. You can customize them to convert them into intake forms, questionnaires on a patient’s health history, feedback forms, and more. These forms are easy to customize using the drag-and-drop builder.

e-Signatures

Digital forms are valid and authenticated only when they are accompanied by e-signatures. With Hushmail, your patients can easily add digital signatures for informed consent and to release records. These signatures can be added from any device and are UETA-compliant

Besides these features, Hushmail is also compliant with two-factor authentication and supports SSL/TLS connections.

Request a demo.

4. Identillect

Identillect is a user-friendly and secure email solution that protects critical PHI, ensuring HIPAA compliance.  This platform leverages the latest technologies, including the Ethereum blockchain, to verify emails and protect their confidentiality.  It also offers plugins for Gmail and M365.

Source: Identillect

Let’s see the unique aspects of this email platform.

Outlook Add-In

The Outlook add-in allows you to send secure emails from your Microsoft 365 suite. Identillect uses a patented security technology called vCard to make all Outlook communications secure. Moreover, this technology makes it easy to create new security policies and enforce them for all communications to and from Outlook.

Instant Encryption

You can safely use any Internet-based email service with Identillect’s encryption service. When you click the encrypt option, Identillect instantly encrypts the messages to make them secure. Moreover, it provides complete control to the sender throughout the email lifecycle.

Email Integrity and Security

Identillect uses the Ethereum blockchain to ensure email integrity. If any of the details are modified or if the email is not verified even in one of the aspects, the recipient cannot open or view the email contents. This feature helps prevent fraud and boosts compliance with HIPAA.

Additionally, Identillect uses RSA 2048 and AES-256 encryption algorithms and even allows full revocation of the emails when needed.

Request a demo.

5. Paubox

Paubox is an email suite designed to comply with the regulations of HIPAA and HITRUST CSF. It is also easy to set up and comes with forms and added security for sending HIPAA-compliant emails.

Source: Paubox

Let’s now take a quick look at Paubox’s features.

Secure Email

Paubox adds many security features to ensure that your emails are safe and meet HIPAA’s requirements. In particular, it has add-on protection against ransomware, phishing, and even spoofing attacks. Moreover, its advanced filters can identify and remove spam emails while its data loss prevention ensures that patient data is not sent out of your organization without authorization.

Form Builder

Another key feature is the HIPAA-compliant form builder. This form builder is intuitive to use and can be easily customized to meet your specific requirements. You can use this form to collect patient data, get files and documents as evidence, and more.

Encryption

All email communications are automatically encrypted by Paubox. There is no human element involved like clicking a button, and this removes even the smallest possibility of sending unencrypted emails. Also, emails can be read only in the inboxes of email clients and not on the web. It integrates with Salesforce CRM as well.

Furthermore, Paubox generates email reports and supports two-factor authentication for added security.

Request a demo.

6.ProtonMail

ProtonMail is well-known for its focus on privacy and security. It is an open-source platform that’s recommended by the United Nations for its transparency and detailed encryption. A highlight of this tool is that no one can view or access the contents of your emails, not even the employees of Proton. This privacy is what makes ProtonMail well-suited for HIPAA.

Source: ProtonMail

Below are ProtonMail’s notable features.

Comprehensive Encryption

The zero-access encryption model of ProtonMail makes it impossible for anyone to access your email, making it safe from hackers and just about anyone who is not authorized to view it. Moreover, ProtonMail’s terms state that it doesn’t sell or share data and there are no ads either.

Privacy

Privacy is one of the pillars of HIPAA, and ProtonMail supports it in every way. Your emails and data are not stored in the cloud but in the data centers housed in Switzerland. As you know, the Swiss have the most stringent privacy laws in the world, making it impossible for anyone to access the data.

Easy to Use

While focusing on privacy and security, ProtonMail also keeps it simple for users to navigate through the interface. The encryption is automatic and doesn’t require any additional steps. Moreover, it’s easy to import data from other services like Google and Outlook. This imported data is also automatically encrypted.

Along with the above features, ProtonMail is open-source and is audited by security experts. You can access this tool from any device, and there’s a free version.

Check the pricing.

7. MailHippo

MailHippo is a HIPAA-compliant and encrypted email service for sending and receiving emails and attachments securely. No installation or setup is required. All that you have to do is sign up and start sending and receiving emails, making it easy for all users.

Source: MailHippo

Let’s now look at MailHippo’s capabilities.

Highly Secure

MailHippo uses AES-256-bit encryption during transit and at rest to protect your sensitive content from unauthorized access. You can also create a unique link and send it to the person sending messages. The advantage is that the emails you receive from anyone are secure.

Provides BAA

MailHippo provides a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) to covered entities at the time of signup. From your perspective, this agreement removes your obligations related to HIPAA emails. Moreover, MailHippo has all the necessary security and privacy regulations in place to meet HIPAA compliance.

Integrates with Existing Email

You can choose to retain your existing email and integrate MailHippo with your current email address, regardless of the provider. This flexibility ensures minimum disruption to your business.

Besides the above features, MailHippo uses two-factor authentication and access logs to add more security to your email communication.

Request a demo.

Thus, these are some of the best HIPAA-compliant email providers. While there are many more available, we believe these seven tools have all the features you need to start sending HIPAA-compliant emails.

Bottom Line

In summary, HIPAA does not provide explicit rules for emails, but its focus on security and privacy automatically requires covered entities to maintain these aspects in emails to avoid non-compliance. In this article, we discussed seven tools that offer some of the best privacy and security features that ensure HIPAA compliance. We hope they come in handy to send and receive secure emails while carrying out your obligations towards HIPAA.