Privacy & Security

IRB Approved

All projects are IRB approved research projects that adhere to an ethical framework. The privacy and confidentiality of patient data is protected by de-identification methods that meet the Safe Harbor principles outlined in the HIPAA Privacy Rule. Academic Partners can propose or participate in AI research projects that align with their interests.

HIPAA Compliant

Academic Partners utilize aiCore software, HIPAA-compliant bulk image retrieval and bulk image and report de-identification software that removes all PHI. The de-identified images, reports, and multimodal data files are labelled with coded identifiers. The Academic Partner and our miners quality control the de-identification and secure transfer process.

Image and Text De-Identification

aiCore is a MacOs application that is provided at not coast. aiCore performs image and text de-identification on premise at each site. The software builds off of the Clinical Trial Processor from the RSNA and the National Library of Medicine scrubber and also includes a large language model for double de-identification of text. Patient names, medical record numbers, and the names of academic medical centers are replaced with coded identifiers, and all dates in images and text are shifted.

Secure Data Transfer and Storage

All data transfers utilize HIPAA-compliant secure data transfer methods.
All data transfer are governed under a data use agreement for data transferred from the Academic Partner to the AI MINER repository and for data transferred from the AI MINER repository to the Industry Partners.

Fair Pricing

Our fair pricing covers research and service expenses only, including personnel effort and data curation, de-identification, storage and transfer. We don’t sell or place a value on patient images or data.

Got questions?

Ask us directly

Is it legal and ethical to share de-identified medical images, reports, and metadata?

In the United States, each medical center owns the images, reports, and multimodal data. It is legal to and ethical to share these under an IRB-approved research study. The Artificial Intelligence Multi-Institutional Network for Ethical Research (AI MINER) is an IRB approved research study. This study has minimal risk, qualities for a HIPAA waiver and waiver of consent, and the images, reports, and multimodal data will be de-identified with a coded identifier applied.

What kind of protected health information (PHI) is removed by the software?

The following PHI will remain with the Academic Partners and will not be entered into the AI MINER repository:

Names (Full or last name and initial)
All geographical identifiers smaller than a state
Dates (other than year) directly related to an individual
Phone Numbers
Fax numbers
Email addresses
Social Security numbers
Medical record numbers
Health insurance beneficiary numbers
Account numbers
Certificate/license numbers
Vehicle identifiers (including serial numbers and license plate numbers)
Device identifiers and serial numbers
Web Uniform Resource Locators (URLs)
Internet Protocol (IP) address numbers
Biometric identifiers, including finger, retinal and voice prints
Full face photographic images and any comparable images
Any other unique identifying number, characteristic, or code except the unique coded identifier assigned by the investigator to code the data

Will the name of my Academic Medical Center (AMC) be in the de-identified images, reports or metadata?

No. The name of each AMC is removed from the images, reports, and multimodal data as part of the de-identified process. Our de-identification software labels each site with a coded identifier that cannot be linked back to the specific AMCs by outside entities.

Does AI MINER buy and sell patient datasets, and how much does it cost?

We don’t sell or place a value on patient images, reports, or data. Our fair pricing covers research and service expenses only, including personnel effort and data curation, de-identification, storage and transfer. The costs of our services depend upon the volume of images needed and overall complexity of the research, including the need for patient outcomes data.

Ethics & Security