Fax Encryption Standards Explained (AES-256, TLS)

By Zak B., Founder & CEO

For more details, read the official guidelines at this resource.

What are the Core Fax Encryption Standards?

When evaluating a digital fax provider for HIPAA compliance, you must verify that they use industry-standard encryption. There are two phases of data protection:

• Data in Transit: How the document is protected while moving over the internet.
• Data at Rest: How the document is protected while stored on servers before or after delivery.

What is TLS (Transport Layer Security) in Faxing?

TLS is the protocol used to encrypt data in transit. When a user uploads a PDF to a platform like FaxLock, the connection is secured using TLS 1.2 or 1.3. This creates a secure tunnel between the user's browser and the server, preventing man-in-the-middle attacks.

Once the document reaches the fax gateway, the gateway connects to the receiving fax machine over traditional telephony (PSTN). While the PSTN portion is analog, the digital transmission to the gateway is protected by TLS.

What is AES-256 Encryption at Rest?

AES-256 is a symmetric encryption algorithm that uses a 256-bit key. It is the gold standard for securing data at rest. When your fax is stored on the server (even momentarily before delivery), it is encrypted using AES-256. This means that even if the physical server were compromised, the attacker would only see encrypted ciphertext, not the actual document.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is AES-256 encryption?

AES-256 (Advanced Encryption Standard with a 256-bit key) is a symmetric encryption algorithm used to protect data at rest. It is considered highly secure and is the standard for protecting sensitive healthcare data.

What is TLS in faxing?

TLS (Transport Layer Security) encrypts data in transit over the internet. It ensures that fax documents cannot be intercepted or read by unauthorized parties while moving between the sender and the fax gateway.