Secure Email
Overview
The Secure Email service is designed for members of the Stanford community who need to send Prohibited or Restricted data to people outside of the @stanford.edu email domain. If you are sending email only to addresses ending in @stanford.edu, you are not required to use this service.
The Stanford Secure Email service is designed as an opt-in service. The service assumes that a Stanford community member can identify whether or not they need to use the service.
In order to reduce the risk of unauthorized access to Stanford University Prohibited and Restricted information, email which contains Prohibited or Restricted information may only be received on Stanford mail servers. If in your role at Stanford University there is any chance that you might receive Prohibited or Restricted data via email, please do not have your email forwarded automatically outside of the @stanford.edu email system. For example, you should not forward your Stanford email to a gmail or yahoo email address. Take a moment to check StanfordYou to confirm your settings.
If you aren't sure if the data you are sending to an address ending in anything other than @stanford.edu qualifies as data that must be encrypted, please see the data classification standards.
Using the service is easy. Your desktop support group can help you configure your email client to point to smtp-secure.stanford.edu for outbound email messages. When that has been done, all you need to do is put "Secure:" or "Encrypt:" in the subject line of the message you want encrypted.
Note about using Secure Email & Stanford Email (including Webmail): You can receive, read, and reply to Secure Email messages in Webmail, but you cannot use Webmail to initiate and send Secure Email messages. To configure Outlook for Secure Email, see Configuring Outlook Connector. For Apple's Mail.app and other desktop email applications for the Mac, use the "Generic Configuration" settings in the Quick Configuration Guide.
If, after reading the guidelines and going through the training below you are unsure whether you should be using the Secure Email service, consult with your manager or your local Privacy Officer.
Training
Before using the Secure Email service, please take the training on the web at:
http://hipaa.stanford.edu/training/secure_email
Please note: This secure email service does not automatically insert the email into the official medical record.
If a Stanford faculty or staff member is using this service to communicate with a patient or provider, be sure to contact the Health Information Management Services (HIMS) office for complete requirements on the medical record and email.
Secure Email Installation
After completing the training, your desktop email client must be reconfigured to use Stanford Secure Email. It is recommended that you work with a desktop technician to reconfigure the desktop email client.
Please contact your local Help Desk. For the Medical School, call 5-8000. For non-Medical School users, dial 5-HELP. Or, you may submit a HelpSU request.
