Online Counseling Confidentiality & Security

Privacy In Chat Therapy
Two Options: Privacy in Email Counseling  
Privacy Using the Questionnaire
Limits to Confidentiality & Privacy

Confidentiality: I, Carl Benedict, am a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC) in Maryland, legally and ethically bound to protect your online counseling confidentiality, including the confidentiality of your records, which are stored and secured according to professional guidelines.

Your email address and personal information will never be shared with third parties. I employ state-of-the-art technology to ensure your online therapy privacy. I never see your credit card information when you pay, which is processed through PayPal, the global leader in online payments. For more information about payment security, go to About PayPal Security. For more information on online therapy security, keep reading.

Caution: To protect your privacy, be prudent in how you store treatment-related emails and chat room transcripts. Make sure they are protected from unauthorized access by using and guarding your passwords. Consider deleting any emails (sent or received) or chat room transcripts that you do not want others to see, followed by emptying your trash or recycle bins. If you make hard copies of emails or chat transcripts, store them securely. Be aware that emails sent from a workplace computer are the property of the employer. Continue reading to see how I ensure your online counseling confidentiality and privacy.

Privacy In Chat Therapy: There are two options for secure Chat Therapy.

1. The best option is AIM Pro, a free America Online Instant Messaging program that is password-controlled and utilizes Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol, which encrypts all text exchanged between users of AIM Pro. SSL protocol is the widely-used standard for sending credit card information when making online purchases.  Thus, AIM Pro is private and highly secure for chat sessions.

You must download the program at AIM Pro and set up an AIM Pro account, which takes five minutes and is free. If you already have another AOL AIM account, then you can use the same screen name for AIM Pro. AIM Pro is a great product that provides excellent privacy and attractive features, such as the ability to see when each other is typing. I highly recommend AIM Pro and will help you set it up if necessary.

2. If you do not want to download AIM Pro, then we can use my Serenity Online Therapy Chat Room, of which I am the sole administrator. Access is password-controlled and SSL encrypted. Unfortunately, the Serenity Online Therapy Chat Room is much slower than AIM Pro and does not have added features, such as the ability to see when each other is typing. You can view this chat room at My Office or Serenity Online Therapy Chat Room.

Whether using AIM Pro or my Chat Room, I will print out the chat text at the end of each session and give you the option of doing the same or saving it to your hard drive before I delete it. My hard copy transcript of each session will be locked in a secure filing cabinet and shredded three years after our last contact. I will never keep an electronic record of our chat room transcripts.

Privacy in Email Counseling: When you click the Submit Button on the Email Counseling Submission Form, the information you have provided will be sent instantaneously to my Safe-mail address, which utilizes Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption protocol, and thus, is highly secure. However, in the few seconds it takes for your personal information to arrive at my Safe-mail address, it is not encrypted, and, thus, theoretically could be intercepted, although such an outcome is extremely unlikely. Therefore, I have made providing your last name on this form optional, but I do require that you enter your first name and email address.

Once your Email Counseling Submission Form information arrives at my secure Safe-mail address, I will print it out, then delete it from Safe-mail. Thus, I will never keep an electronic record of your information. Printouts are kept in my locked filing cabinet and will be shredded three years after our last contact.

You have TWO OPTIONS with respect to how I send my email response to you. (Note: You will be required to specify your choice on the Email Counseling Submission Form.) Please read about each option below, then choose the best one for you:

Option 1: Safe-mail - I highly recommend that you choose this option. In less than five minutes you can go to Safe-mail and create your own Safe-mail email account for free. That's right, it is free. Be sure to email me your Safe-mail address using the Contact Me form.

(Note: During registration when Safe-mail asks for your email address, it means a new user name of your choice for Safe-mail, not your personal email address.)

Safe-mail uses SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) protocol for all email transmissions between users who have Safe-mail accounts. Thus it offers state-of-the-art security for online Email Counseling confidentiality not available through standard email exchanges.

I have a Safe-mail email account that I use exclusively for my online counseling practice.  Once you email me your Safe-mail address, I will then respond to your first Email Submission at that address, and we will continue to use our Safe-mail addresses for any future email correspondence with complete confidence in privacy and security.

Option 2: Regular Email - If you choose this option, I will send my response to you at your regular email address, the one listed on the Email Counseling Submission Form. This method does not ensure online counseling confidentiality because there exists the potential that emails can be intercepted much as phone conversations can be wiretapped, office visits can be overheard outside the door, and postcards can be read in transit.

Privacy Using the Questionnaire: When you click the Submit Button on the Questionnaire, the personal information you have provided will be sent instantaneously to my Safe-mail address, which utilizes Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption protocol, and thus, is highly secure. However, in the few seconds it takes for your personal information to arrive at my Safe-mail address, it is not encrypted, and, thus, theoretically could be intercepted, although such an outcome is extremely unlikely.

Nonetheless, I have made most of your personal identifying data (last name, address, phone number, date of birth, etc.) on my Questionnaire optional. I do require that you enter your first name, age, state, country, and email address. Still, it would not be ethical for me to offer counseling to an unidentified person. Therefore, if you choose not to enter the optional personal identifying data, I will ask you for it at our first chat therapy session or in our first email counseling transaction, which will be in an SSL-encrypted, secure environment.

Once your Questionnaire information arrives at my secure Safe-mail address, I will print it out, then delete it from Safe-mail. Thus, I will never keep an electronic record of your information. Printouts are kept in my locked filing cabinet and will be shredded three years after our last contact.

Limits to Confidentiality & Privacy: There are limits to your confidentiality and privacy. State law requires that I report to the local Department of Social Services (DSS) any evidence I have of a child being abused or neglected. In other words, if you tell me that you are physically abusing or severely neglecting your child, or identify someone who  is, I am required by law to make a report to DSS.

Similarly, if you tell me that you are going to kill yourself or someone else, I am required by law to inform the police and the other person, and do anything else necessary to stop the suicide or murder.

And finally, in the rare event I would be subpoenaed by a court of law to produce your confidential records and a judge ordered me to comply, then I would. (Note: The same would be true in face-to-face therapy.)

If you have any questions concerning online counseling confidentiality, security, or privacy issues, please Contact Me.