Home HIPAA Controls 164.312(a)(1)
164.312(a)(1) Technical Safeguards

Access Control

Critical Risk Complex High

Implement technical policies and procedures for electronic information systems that maintain ePHI to allow access only to those persons or software programs that have been granted access rights.

Implementation Guidance

Implement unique user identification, emergency access procedures, automatic logoff, and encryption/decryption of ePHI.

Required Documentation

Access control policies, user identification procedures, emergency access procedures, automatic logoff procedures, encryption procedures.

Best Practices

Implement unique user identification, use strong authentication methods, implement role-based access control, use encryption for ePHI at rest and in transit, implement automatic logoff.

Common Violations

Shared user accounts, lack of unique user identification, inadequate emergency access procedures, insufficient automatic logoff, weak or no encryption.

Testing Procedures

Review access control policies, test user identification and authentication, verify emergency access procedures, test automatic logoff functionality, verify encryption implementation.

Implementation Resources

Download expert-developed templates and checklists to implement this control:

Implementation Checklist
Policy Template

Quick Facts

Control ID 164.312(a)(1)
Category Technical Safeguards
Risk Level Critical
Difficulty Complex
Est. Cost High
Timeframe 3-6 months
Last Updated Mar 7, 2026
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164.312(b) High

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164.312(c) Critical

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Implement procedures to verify that a person or entity seeking access to ePHI is the one claimed....

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