Information privacy, confidentiality, and security are probably the greatest issues surrounding e-mail communication between healthcare providers and consumers. E-mail communication is so vulnerable to eavesdropping tapping and hacking and this vices risk the exposure of vital and confidential information regarding patients.
In workplaces and homes, e-mail communication is common and a lack of proper security measures may expose medical records to family members or even other workmates. So far, very little has been done to safeguard information transmitted by physicians and patients via e-mail. Relevant authorities have realized the gravity of the issue and are coming up with practical and applicable recommendations. The Computer Science and Telecommunication Board of the National Research Council proposed the use of cryptography in e-mail communication (Mandl, Kahone & Brandt, 2004). This technology would ensure the information being transmitted between senders, and the recipient is encrypted, and only the person possessing the decryption key can access it.