Updated 31st October 2024

This Privacy Policy explains how NovoPsych Pty Ltd (ABN 99 158 319 629) protects the privacy of personal information when using the note-taking tool known as NovoNote. Note, that there is a separate privacy policy for the assessment platform NovoPsych Psychometrics, found here. 

We are the custodians of your data, but you remain the owner. Every step has been taken to help you manage your information securely and confidentially. We are firmly committed to protecting the privacy and confidentiality of personal information and maintain robust physical, electronic and procedural safeguards to protect personal information in our care.

This page is broken into two sections, our Privacy Policy that outlines what we do with data and a Data Security section which outlines how we keep your data secure. We’ve tried to make this page as easy to read as possible. After all, it’s your information and you deserve to know what we do to protect it and all the rights you have. If there is anything you’re unsure of, you can see the “Definitions” section at the end. Otherwise, please contact us here and we’d be happy to answer any questions.

We’ve taken care to structure our privacy policy and security protocols to be consistent with Australian (APP), European (GDPR) and North American (HIPAA) standards. 

Australian Compliance

NovoPsych complies with Australian Privacy Principles. The Australian Privacy Act 1988 and Australian Privacy Principles govern the standards and obligations to Australian organisations, including the following:

• the collection, use and disclosure of personal information
• an organisation or agency’s governance and accountability
• integrity and correction of personal information
• the rights of individuals to access their personal information

European Compliance (GDPR)

The European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) sets out clear standards for data protection, which NovoPsych meets or surpasses. In October 2024, NovoPsych Pty Ltd reviewed our security to ensure we met GDPR standards, including:

• documented a privacy by design approach to compliance
• demonstrated compliance with privacy principles
• enhanced transparent information handling practices

Australian and GDPR requirements are complimentary. Both sets of laws foster transparent information handling practices and business accountability, to give individuals confidence that their privacy is being protected. Both laws require businesses to implement measures that ensure compliance with a set of privacy principles, and both take a “privacy by design” approach to compliance. Data breach notification is required in certain circumstances under the GDPR and under the Privacy Act (from February 2018). In addition, privacy impact assessments, mandated in certain circumstances under the GDPR, are expected in similar circumstances in Australia.

Although not a requirement of GDPR, large organisations in Europe with internal governance guidelines may opt for servers to be located within their own country, which can be accommodated by NovoPsych under the Enterprise Plan.

United States regulations (HIPAA Compliance)

NovoNote is HIPAA Complaint. If you are in North America, please see our Business Associate Agreement.

As a software vendor committed to HIPAA compliance, we have implemented a comprehensive set of safeguards to ensure the privacy and security of Protected Health Information (PHI). We utilize encryption to protect data both at rest and in transit, ensuring that PHI is secure from unauthorized access. Access to the system is controlled through multi-factor authentication and role-based access controls, ensuring only authorized personnel can interact with sensitive information. We conduct regular risk assessments and have developed a formal data backup and disaster recovery plan to maintain continuity in the event of a system failure. Additionally, all third-party vendors that interact with PHI sign Business Associate Agreements (BAAs), ensuring they are also HIPAA-compliant. Our employees undergo security training to remain informed of regulations and best practices. Lastly, we have established a robust breach notification process to ensure timely reporting and mitigation of any security incidents, further protecting the integrity and confidentiality of PHI.

Canadian regulations (PIPEDA and PIPA Compliance)

We comply with Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) in British Columbia and Alberta. Our commitment to these standards ensures that your data is collected, stored, and processed responsibly, and in compliance with Canadian privacy laws.

NovoNote Privacy Policy

Personal Data

While using our Service, we may ask users to provide us with certain personally identifiable information that can be used to contact or identify an individual (“Personal Data”). Personally identifiable information may include, but is not limited to: name, email address, telephone numbers, address, credit card details, cookies and information about that individual’s activities when directly linked to that person such as information about his or her use of the NovoNote website or services. Personal information can also include demographic information such as date of birth, gender, geographic area and preferences when such information is linked to other personal information that identifies an individual.

Where possible, we allow users to input client (patient) information anonymously or by using a pseudonym. For most of our functions and activities, we will generally need the user’s (clinician’s) name and contact information, and enough information about the matter to help you use the service effectively. If you choose not to provide your personal data, some functions and features on our websites and software may not be available and we may not be able to provide you with all our services.

Our users also enter personal data about their patients. This data can include sensitive information such as health records and may include, but is not limited to: name, email address, telephone numbers, personal preferences, condition, treatment details and psychometric scores and text based session transcripts. . This data may also relate to minors and other vulnerable individuals who may be patients of NovoNote  customers. You may use the patient’s real identifying information or pseudonym. We encourage users to use de-identified names or codes when inputting patient data. We will not use patient’s identifiable data for any purpose not intrinsic to NovoNote’s functionality.

Usage Data

We may also collect information on how the Service is accessed and used (“Usage Data”). This Usage Data may include information such as users’ computer Internet Protocol address (IP address), browser type, browser version, the pages of our Service that they visit, the time and date of their visit, the time spent on those pages, unique device identifiers and other diagnostic data.

How We Use Data

All information we collect directly or indirectly about users or their patients is strictly confidential. We do not rent, lease nor make available customer lists or any other identifiable information contained in customer accounts (including patient details), to third parties. We will not reveal, disclose, sell, distribute, rent, license, share or pass onto any third party (other than those who are contracted or supply services to us) any identifiable information that may have been provided to us directly or stored in a customer’s account unless we have express consent to do so, other than in the circumstances set out in this policy.

Service Provision

We require this information to understand your needs and provide you with a better service and may use the data for the following reasons:

Communication

We may use personal data to contact users with information about new features or announcements, to update users on the status of their account, to issue invoices, receipts, payment reminders, to provide training information, operational communications (like security updates), to send marketing communications, to seek feedback or communicate other information that may be relevant.

We don’t recommend it but you can opt-out of receiving emails about new features and similar announcements by clicking on the ‘opt-out’ or ‘unsubscribe”  link or instructions in the email. Users cannot opt-out of receiving transactional emails or notifications relating to their account status, security announcements or other communication that might be essential to the operation of their account.

Customer Support

We use user data to provide assistance with the resolution of any technical support issues and to assist users with using our service.

Ending Service Provision

Users that cease to use NovoNote and all business with us is concluded (for example they have closed their practice and their NovoNote account), can opt-out of all communications from us. See the section below for your rights on deleting data.

Legal Basis for Processing (under GDPR)

For users from the European Economic Area (EEA), NovoNote’s legal basis for collecting and using the personal information described in this Privacy Policy depends on the Personal Data we collect and the specific context in which we collect it.

NovoNote may process your Personal Data because:

• We need to perform a contract with you;
• You have given us permission to do so;
• The processing is in our legitimate interests and it’s not overridden by your rights;
• For payment processing purposes;
• To comply with the law.

Location of Your Data

If you’re on an Enterprise Plan, you can opt to have your data stored in any specific country or region where you operate, such as the UK, Australia, USA, Canada or European Union. When opting for data location, choosing your jurisdiction is beneficial for data security, compliance  and speed purposes.  For other users who have not specified a data location, Patient Data is stored in Australia. Other data (non-Patient Data) will not be stored outside of Australia, USA, Ireland and the UK. These practices are consistent with Australian Privacy Principles, HIPAA and GDPR. Patient information is not transmitted to the USA.

Your Data Choices

NovoPsych uses anonymous data to improve our service. However, if you would prefer your data to not be used for these purposes, you can use NovoNote in the following ways. 

• • Feedback. NovoNote has feedback features so you can let us know what is working well and which features need improvement. If you use these feedback features, we may review your usage including the specific transcript, note or other Patient Information for the purposes of identifying or resolving the issue. A human will only review your Patient Information if you use these feedback features (such as thumbs up, thumbs down or written feedback). If you do not want a human to access Patient Information, do not use these feedback features. 
  • Redaction. By default, some personally identifiable Patient Information is redacted from the text-based session transcript, enhancing privacy. However, some users may choose to turn off redaction. If you turn off redaction, this means the personally identifiable Patient Information will be stored on our secure servers until it is deleted. When changing redaction settings, consider the extra information that will be stored. 

• Deleting Data. In order to use NovoNote, Patient Information must be stored on NovoNote servers temporarily. These data can either be stored on the NovoNote servers permanently or deleted immediately after use. For example, once a note is created, all data related to that session such as the text-based transcript and note, can be deleted from NovoNote servers. While there are certain advantages of keeping data on NovoNote(such as synthesis of records and as a data repository), when you delete data it will be permanently deleted. 

• Automatically Deleting Transcripts. When audio of a session is recorded, it is immediately converted into a text-based transcript. By default, this transcript will be deleted after a predetermined time and the amount of time before deletion is a user selectable setting. Users are encouraged to consider these settings and choose to delete transcripts in a period that suits their needs. 

How does NovoNote Protect your Information?

NovoNote software and our working environment are built with integrated physical, electronic and managerial processes designed to safeguard your information and protect it from misuse, interference loss and unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. Here are some of the key things we do to protect your information.

Staff training
We put NovoNote staff through training for how to keep your information safe and secure at all times. 

Data Silos
In order to safeguard personal and health information, access to certain systems is restricted to only those NovoNote staff members whose roles require it. We implement strict access controls and permissions, ensuring that sensitive information is only accessible to authorized personnel. For instance, staff with subject matter expertise (such as a psychologist) and administrative staff may have differing levels of access based on their responsibilities, and access to personal information is only granted on a need-to-know basis. All staff with access to sensitive information are required to adhere to confidentiality agreements and undergo regular privacy and security training to maintain our commitment to data protection.

Encryption
NovoNote employs bank industry encryption on all data both at rest and in transit.

De-identification tools
We use a range of tools designed to de-identify your information (such as redaction) before it is used or disclosed for certain purposes, as described in this policy.

Secure storage and handling
We use a combination of techniques and measures to maintain the security of NovoNote and to protect your account and your information.

Analysis and Development

We may also use user data to improve the NovoNote service or product, analyse trends, and monitor the usage of the service as well as detect, prevent and address technical issues. We may use collated de-identified Patient Information to understand or improve the product.

NovoNote and NovoPsych Psychometrics Data

In order to improve the quality of NovoNote services to users, NovoNote may access information provided in other products provided by NovoPsych Pty Ltd, such as NovoPsych Psychometrics. 

Data sharing

NovoNote  will not disclose any data uploaded to our servers to anyone else without permission, except for the following reasons;

Legal or Moral Requirement

In rare circumstances, we will share the personal data necessary where permitted or required by law, requested and needed for a patient’s emergency treatment in exceptional circumstances, or for the prevention of immediate risk of loss of life or serious harm; to various regulatory bodies,law enforcement officials and agencies to protect against fraud and for related security purposes.

International Data Transfers

NovoNote operates internationally and we may share user data, transfer and process data in countries other than the country you live in. These practices are consistent with Australian Privacy Principles , GDPR and HIPAA. These countries may have different laws but rest assured that when we share personal data to a third party, we take all reasonable steps to ensure that personal data remains protected in the manner you would expect. For individuals in the European Economic Area (EEA), your data may be transferred outside of the EEA but it will only be transferred to countries that provide adequate protection or to a third party where we have reviewed their data protection processes and policies for adherence to the GDPR Standard Contractual Clauses.

Infrastructure Sub-Processors

In order to provide our services to customers and their patients, NovoNote employs third party companies to assist with providing the services. Where necessary, we share a limited amount of personal data with our third-party service providers and sub-processors. NovoNote takes care to select integration partners with first class data management policies in place and will only share the data necessary for the integration to work effectively. In all cases, we provide only the minimum amount of personal data that is needed to perform the service and take reasonable steps to ensure these parties have appropriate data protection safeguards in place. Note that some functionalities of our Platform depend on third-party services, whose servers may be located internationally. Whenever these third-party services are utilised, we ensure that data processing agreements are entered into. These agreements are crucial as they enforce compliance with data protection standards and legal requirements, safeguarding your personal information from unauthorised use or disclosure. This contractual measure helps maintain the integrity and confidentiality of your data while enabling us to provide enhanced functionality through external services.

Corporate Transactions

In the unlikely event that NovoNote is involved in a merger, acquisition or asset sale, Personal Data may be ultimately transferred as part of the completed transaction. However, all data remains subject to the promises made in this Privacy Policy unless the customer agrees to be subject to new Privacy Policy terms.

How we retain your data

We will retain Personal Data only for as long as is necessary for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy. We will also retain and use Personal Data to the extent necessary to comply with our legal obligations (for example, if we are required to retain data to comply with applicable laws), resolve disputes and enforce our legal agreements and policies.

We will also retain Usage Data for internal analysis purposes. Usage Data is generally retained for a shorter period of time, except when this data is used to strengthen the security or to improve the functionality of our Service or when we are legally obligated to retain this data for longer time periods.

Your rights to your data

We aim to take reasonable steps to allow you to correct, amend, delete, destroy or limit the use of your Personal Data. If you are a resident of the European Economic Area (EEA), you have certain data protection rights and we extend these rights to all users. In addition, under Australian Privacy Principle 11 (APP 11) we are required to take reasonable steps to destroy or de-identify personal information when it is no longer required for the purpose for which it was collected.

In certain circumstances, you have the following data protection rights:

• The right to access, update or to delete the information we have on you.
• The right of rectification. You have the right to have your information rectified if that information is inaccurate or incomplete.
• The right to object. You have the right to object to our processing of your Personal Data.
• The right of restriction. You have the right to request that we restrict the processing of your personal information.
• The right to data portability. You have the right to be provided with a copy of your Personal Data in a structured, machine-readable and commonly used format.
• The right to withdraw consent. You also have the right to withdraw your consent at any time where NovoPsych relied on your consent to process your personal information.

If you wish to be informed about what Personal Data we hold about you and if you want it to be removed from our systems, please contact us. Please note that we may ask you to verify your identity before responding to such requests. (If you are a patient or client of a business that uses NovoPsych, you will need to contact that business directly to discuss and evoke your protection rights.)

If you live in the EEA, you have the right to complain to a Data Protection Authority about our collection and use of your Personal Data (see below for information about how to contact them). For more information, please contact your local data protection authority in the European Economic Area (EEA).

Exemptions

Note that this policy refers to customer and user data and where applicable, the employee records exemption in the Privacy Act and any other applicable exemptions in the Privacy Act or other legislation will apply.

Changes to this policy

From time to time, we may review and update this Privacy Policy. Revised versions will be updated on this website and will be effective once posted.

Data Security

NovoNote takes reasonable steps to protect the personal information we hold from any misuse, interference, loss, and unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.

Security Precautions

NovoNote  has an extensive range of security measures in place to protect personal information from unauthorised access, use or loss. Our servers are maintained in a controlled and secured environment and access is restricted to only those who need it in order to provide the service.

NovoNote uses 256-bit encryption. We use the cryptographic algorithms SHA-256 with RSA Encryption for our main services.

In addition, our 256-bit (Security Sockets Layer) SSL encryption has employed a number of high level security protocols to protect personal data. Strong encryption such as 256-bits, is over a trillion times stronger than a 40-bit encryption. At current computing speeds, a hacker with the time, tools and motivation to attack using brute force would theoretically require a trillion years to break into a session protected by a Server Gated Cryptography (SGC) enabled certificate.

Below are some of the processes that we have implemented to protect your security.

• The infrastructure we use (AWS) complies with the Commonwealth Government standards governing the security of IT systems and infrastructure.
• The data centre is an enterprise-grade data centre with world-leading Class 1IDC infrastructure. This is the same data centre used and approved by the Department of Health and Ageing.
• Data is fully monitored with 24×7 security guards onsite and premises under constant CCTV surveillance.
• To comply with Australian Laws, all data, backups and offsite backups are stored within Australia.
• The data you enter in NovoNote is replicated among several database servers, as well as backed up off-site to prevent a single failure from causing data loss.
• The multiple redundant VMware platform utilised offers, load balanced ESX servers to maximise performance and availability which has a minimalistic chance of unavailability.

Accreditations and Certifications

We choose our partners carefully. Our hosting partner, Amazon Web Services (AWS), has achieved the following accreditations and certifications:

• PCI DSS Level 1 (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard)
• ISO 27001 (Information Security Management System)
• FIPS 140-2 (United States Federal Information Processing Standard)

Data Breaches

Under the Notifiable Data Breaches (NDB) scheme, any organisation or agency the (Australian) Privacy Act 1988 covers must notify affected individuals and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) when a data breach is likely to result in harm to an individual whose personal information is involved. A data breach occurs when there is unauthorised access or disclosure. For example, when:

• a device owned by NovoPsych Pty Ltd with a customer’s personal information is lost or stolen
• a NovoNote database with personal information is hacked
• personal information is mistakenly given to the wrong person

NovoNote has been operated by NovoPsych Pty Ltd, which has provided healthcare software since 2012 and has never had a data breach of this nature. However if this occurs, we would notify customers and OAIC immediately.

Backups

NovoNote data is backed up daily. Backups are redundantly stored in multiple physical locations. Data is also constantly streamed to replica databases for up to the second redundancy.

In other words, we’ve got backups for your backups and a contingency in place to handle any potential interruptions to the storage process. Don’t forget that you can also export your data and create your own backups too.

Your Role in Security of Your Data

Our users also have an important role to play in keeping data secure. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account details and password. Your passwords protect your personal information and you are responsible for any activities that occur in your account or in respect of your use of this service. Please let us know immediately if you suspect that the security of your password or account has been compromised in any manner.

Create a strong password

Use a unique password for your NovoPsych account. Since longer passwords are generally harder for criminals to break, try using a line from your favourite song or a short sentence you’ll easily remember. We require 10 or more characters in our passwords.

Enable two-factor authentication

Two-factor authentication is an authentication mechanism to double check your identity is legitimate. The intention is to provide stronger protection against unauthorised access to user accounts. NovoNote emails you a temporary code that you need to enter  in order to login. That way, even if someone has unauthorised access to your password, they still can’t access your data. It is recommended that you have two-factor authentication enabled in your NovoPsych account.

Logout of NovoNote when not in use

If you’re not using NovoNote, logout rather than keeping it logged on in a browser tab.

Keep your browser updated

An up-to-date browser will ensure that NovoPsych is performing at its best and that you have the latest protection against online threats.

Use passwords on your devices

Whether you use NovoPsych on a tablet or a computer, make sure that you have password protection to activate the device.

Protecting Your Clients

You are responsible for making sure that your clients’ or patients’ privacy and associated rights are respected. As your Data Processor, we will take care to protect the privacy of your patients and will process their Personal Data in accordance with the terms of our agreement with you and under your lawful instruction.

How To Contact Us

We welcome your feedback. If you have any questions or concerns about our Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, or would like to make a request for information, or believe that we have not complied with this policy, the Privacy Act or other privacy obligations, please contact us at:

Attention: Data Protection Officer
Email: [email protected]

Telephone: If you would prefer to speak by telephone, please email us with your
contact details and concerns, and we will respond in a timely manner. https://novopsych.com.au/contact-us

NovoPsych treats your privacy seriously and any complaints will be assessed by an appropriate person with the aim of resolving any issue in an efficient and timely manner.

If you are not happy with our handling of your privacy concerns, you can also contact your local data protection authority. Depending on your location, you can use the following links;

• Australia: Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC)
• United Kingdom: Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)

These organisations are independent from NovoNote and can investigate privacy complaints.

Definitions

We used various different terms in this policy. To ensure clarity, here are some definitions:

• • Personal Data
    Personal Data means data about an individual that allows them to be identified from that data. It may be provided directly by a user or provided indirectly by a user about their client (for example a health practitioner entering data about their patient). Personal information does not include “aggregate” information, which is data we collect about a group or category of products, services or people, from which individual identities have been removed.
  • Usage Data
    Usage Data is data collected automatically either generated by the use of the Service or from the Service infrastructure itself (for example, the duration of a page visit).
  • Cookies
    Cookies are small pieces of data stored on a User’s device.
  • Data Processor
    Data Processor means the person or entity that processes data on behalf of a data controller. According to GDPR and for the purposes of this policy, NovoPsych is considered to be the data processor.
  • Data Controller
    Data Controller means a person or entity who determines the purposes for which and the manner in which any personal data are or are to be processed. As part of using NovoPsych, you are likely to store personal data about your clients or patients in your NovoPsych account. According to GDPR and for the purpose of this Privacy Policy, you, our customer and user, are considered to be the Data Controller of the data given to us to set up and manage a NovoPsych account.
  • User
    The User (also referred to as our Customer) is the individual using our Service either directly or indirectly. The User is also referred to as the Data Subject and is any individual who can be identified via the Personal Data.
  • NovoPsych Psychometrics
    NovoPsych Psychometrics is a software product developed by the company NovoPsych Pty Ltd. NovoPsych Psychometrics provides, processes and stores psychometric questionnaires for use by mental health practitioners. 

• Patient Information
  Defined as any information about a patient, whether that information is personally identifiable or de-identified. This may include personal health details, medical history, records of diagnosis and treatment, and other sensitive information that relates to the individual’s physical or mental health status. 

• Personally Identifiable Information
  Some Patient Information is also Personally Identifiable Information, such as name, contact details, health insurance information and any other identifiers that could link the information back to a specific individual.