The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was enacted in 1996 with the goal of protecting the privacy of patient health information. In order to comply with HIPAA, healthcare organizations must take measures to ensure that patient data is kept secure, both physically and electronically.
Squarespace is a popular website builder that offers a range of templates and features to create beautiful, professional websites. While Squarespace websites are not specifically designed for healthcare organizations, they can be used to create HIPAA-compliant websites. By taking a few simple precautions, you can ensure that your Squarespace website is fully compliant with HIPAA regulations.
1. Use a Secure Domain
When creating a Squarespace website for a healthcare organization, it is important to use a secure domain. A secure domain is one that uses the https:// protocol instead of the http:// protocol. The “s” in https stands for “secure” and indicates that your website is using a secure connection. This is important because it means that all data transmitted between your website and visitors’ browsers will be encrypted, making it much more difficult for hackers to intercept and steal data.
To set up a secure domain on Squarespace, you will need to purchase an SSL Certificate through your account settings.
2. Use Secure Forms
If your Squarespace website includes any forms where visitors can input sensitive information, such as contact forms, appointment request forms, or survey forms, it is important to use a secure form plugin. A secure form plugin will encrypt all data entered into the form before it is transmitted, ensuring that it remains confidential. There are many different secure form plugins available for Squarespace websites, so be sure to choose one that meets your specific needs.
3. Use Secure Payments
If your Squarespace website includes any eCommerce functionality, you will need to take extra precautions to ensure that all payments are made through a secure payment gateway. A payment gateway encrypts credit card information before it is transmitted, ensuring that it remains confidential. When choosing a payment gateway for your Squarespace website, be sure to select one that is PCI compliant and offers fraud protection.
4. Limit Access to Sensitive Information
It is important to limit access to sensitive information on your Squarespace website to only those who need it. For example, if you have an online store, you will need to ensure that only authorized employees have access to customer credit card information. To do this on Squarespace, you can use the password-protection feature to restrict access to specific pages or sections of your website.
Yes, Squarespace websites are HIPAA compliant as long as you take a few simple precautions such as using a secure domain and securing any forms where sensitive visitor information may be inputted.
