HomeStandards › HIPAA (mobile)

Regulation

HIPAA and mobile health apps

How does HIPAA apply to a mobile app?

HIPAA is the US rule that governs how protected health information (PHI) is handled. When a mobile app stores, processes or transmits PHI, the way it does so on the device and over the network falls under the HIPAA Security Rule, which calls for appropriate safeguards.

On mobile, the safeguards that matter most are technical: protecting health data on the device, securing it in transit, and controlling which third-party SDKs can touch it.

How Mobexa helps

Mobexa tests the build for the exposures behind a PHI breach, such as records stored in clear, weak keychain or keystore use and cleartext traffic, and produces traceable evidence that maps each finding to the safeguard behind it. That evidence supports a HIPAA security assessment rather than replacing it.

Common questions

Does a health app have to be HIPAA compliant?
If the app handles protected health information on behalf of a covered entity or business associate, HIPAA applies. The exact obligations depend on the role and how the app touches PHI.
Can a security scan make an app HIPAA compliant?
No tool makes an app compliant by itself. Mobexa finds the technical exposures and produces evidence mapped to safeguards, which supports the wider assessment.

Mobexa maps every finding on your Android and iOS builds to HIPAA (mobile) and the other standards an auditor recognises.

Start Free Trial