Software Security & HIPAA Compliance

TypeWell's Web Linking platform uses HTTPS/SSL and custom encryption between the desktop app and the Web Linking servers. Encrypted data logs are retained temporarily (to assist customers with recovering a lost transcript if they forget to save a transcript file); however, those data logs are deleted from the servers on a regular, automated schedule.

NOTE: If you need a special server configured to immediately delete data once it's transmitted to a Web Linking page, please contact us for pricing and more information.

All of TypeWell's own employees and contractors are bound by strict confidentiality requirements outlined in our employee/contractor guidelines, which are reviewed annually. Please contact us with any specific questions.

The client should dictate what the transcriber does with the saved transcript.

Sometimes questions arise as to "who owns the transcript?" In general, we believe that the client (who pays for the service) is the rightful owner of the transcript. Furthermore, transcribers have a professional and ethical duty to comply with their client's policies.

If you have specific requirements related to document retention and deletion (i.e. what happens to the transcript after the event is over), please discuss these with your service provider.

Note that in the educational setting, it is standard practice for transcribers to:

1. Save each class transcript to their local hard drive;
2. Edit the transcript (typically removing all identifying information including students' names); and finally,
3. Email or upload the transcript for the student to access later as a study tool.

It is also standard practice for transcribers to delete transcripts from their local hard drives at the end of each quarter or semester unless they are instructed to do differently.

Note for clients and end-users concerned with HIPAA compliance:

If you are contracting directly with us (TypeWell, the company) for on-site or remote transcription services, we are happy to discuss privacy and security questions with you directly. Please call or email us!

If you are contracting with a third-party service provider—such as an agency or a freelance transcriber—and you have concerns about privacy or about electronic protected health information (ePHI), please understand the following:

• TypeWell (the software-as-a-service developer) has no direct interaction with clients or end-users except when they load a secure Web Reader page in their web browser to view/read a live transcript.
• TypeWell has no control over the security of clients' or end-users' internet access points.
• If a TypeWell transcriber is listening remotely to the audio of your meetings or classes via telephone, VOIP, or a videoconferencing platform, then it is up to you and that individual service provider to choose an audio/video platform that meets your specific security requirements.
• TypeWell does not handle the transmission of audio or video; our software and web servers only handle the processing and delivery of text once it is typed by the transcriber.

Other than our software encryption and web server security described above, all other aspects of HIPAA compliance are the responsibility of your contracted service provider. Check with your provider to ensure they (and their employees or subcontractors) have an adequate understanding of HIPAA regulations, and that they can guarantee compliance with your own policies around electronic document retention and deletion.