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Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

This privacy policy (this “Policy”) was last updated on February 1, 2025.

Talkspace (“we”, “our”, “us”, “Talkspace”) takes your privacy seriously, and we want you to know how we collect, use, share and protect your information.

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Introduction

Talkspace Therapy Services

Talkspace offers therapy services using our proprietary technology platform, which leverages advanced data-driven tools to personalize your care and to enhance evidence of care, care continuity, outcomes metrics and data-based learnings. We provide mental health professionals with insights and capabilities to drive improved and measurable clinical outcomes for patients receiving virtual therapeutic services on our platform.

When you enroll, inquire about enrolling for, or use Talkspace Services (as defined below), we keep a record of medical information that you provide to us or your therapist as well as any medical information that Talkspace employees or independently contracted therapists provide to you via our platform (such as information on and related to your diagnosis). Medical information means any information that:

identifies you; and
relates to your past, present, or future physical or mental health, treatment, the provision of health care services or payment for treatment.

This includes medical history, diagnoses, treatments, current medical condition, and use of prescription medications. If you are a US subscriber to Talkspace services, your personal data in our possession is protected health information ("PHI") protected by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended (“HIPAA”), and the applicable provisions of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (“HITECH”) Act. In addition to this Privacy Policy, the HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices of Talkspace or your Talkspace Provider apply to your PHI.

Peer Support Services

We may offer opportunities to participate in moderated peer support forums, such as Teenspace Community (“Peer Support Services”). Peer Support Services are not a substitute for therapy and when you participate you acknowledge and agree that Peer Support Services do not provide you with therapy or other healthcare-related services. When you submit a post or comment using the Peer Support Services, other users will be able to see the contents of the post or comment, the username associated with the post or comment, the date and time you originally submitted the post or comment, your state of residence, and your age. Your post or comment may be re-posted or re-shared by other users (online or offline) even if you restrict access to the post or comment. You can remove posts, comments, or other information associated with your use of Peer Support Services at any time using your account settings. You can also use our block feature to manage the users with whom you communicate. Never use the Peer Support Services to publicly share your personal data, including your real name, email address, phone number, address, or other contact details.

Definitions

For purposes of this Policy, “personal data” means information that relates to an identified or identifiable individual, and includes “personal information” or “personally identifiable information.” To “process” or “processing” means the use of personal data including, collecting, recording, storing, using, analyzing, combining, transferring, disclosing, or deleting.

Changes to this Policy

We reserve the right to change the terms of this Policy at any time by posting those changes in revisions to this Policy, so that you are always aware of our processes related to collection, use and disclosure of information. If we change the Policy in a material way, we will provide appropriate notice to you, such as via our website. We urge you to check here for any updates to this Policy from time to time. Unless otherwise indicated, any changes to this Policy will apply immediately upon posting to the Website or the App.

Contents

What is included in this Policy?
Personal Data We Process & How We Use It
Information Disclosure
Using the Talkspace App
Advanced Data Processing
Research
What choices do you have about how we collect or use your information?
How can I access, delete, or modify my personal data?
US Privacy Rights
EU/EEA/UK Privacy Rights
Retention
Talkspace and Minors
Other Mobile Applications and Services
Applying for a Job at Talkspace
Security
How to Contact Us
Additional Information for EU and UK users

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What is included in this Policy?

The information on this page applies to the personal data we collect about your interactions, use, and experience with our website at https://www.talkspace.com (our “Website”), our app on iOS or Android (our “App”), and in connection with the online therapy services we provide (the Website, App and our online therapy services are together, the “Services”). As noted below, our data practices depend on how you interact with our Services, and how you receive and pay for Services, for example whether purchasing Services as a consumer or receiving them through an employment-related benefit.

This Policy does not apply to any other websites that you visit before our Website or any third-party sites that may be accessible through the Talkspace Services. Please read this Policy carefully so that you understand your rights in relation to personal data, and how we will process that personal data. This Policy supplements our Notice of Privacy Practices (for US patients) any other privacy related disclosures we may provide from time to time (including during your enrollment or management of your account with Talkspace) and is not intended to override them.

If you do not want us to share personal data or feel uncomfortable with the ways we use information in order to deliver our Services, please do not use the Services.

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Personal Data We Process & How We Use It

This table presents the types of information we process (whether legally classified as personal data or PHI under HIPAA), the sources, and the uses.

Personal Data Processing
Types of Personal Data	How We Get It	What we do with it
Registration Information you provide when you create an account for yourself (or an authorized account for a minor), are matched to a therapist, or register yourself (or on behalf of a minor) as a patient: Name (e.g. your name or the name of your parent/guardian) Address Country Date of birth Phone number Gender and the preferred gender of therapist Email Relationship status Organization/Employer (if applicable) Payment information and transaction history Information on the type of subscription you choose Insurance information (including an image of that information) Referral source Information on why you are accessing our Services including what you are hoping to get from therapy Notification preferences	You provide this when you go through the intake process	Provide you with the Services (including resubscription) To match you to a therapist Provide you with treatment information Enroll you in services and administer your account Provide you with support Process insurance claims, billing, and payment information Maintaining the safety and security of our users, our Services, and our business Provide announcements and communicate with you, including for marketing purposes Provide mandatory reporting to law enforcement or other governmental authorities, for example in instances of abuse, or ascertainable threats of violence to another person (See Notice of Privacy Practices for more information) Respond to a valid legal request. Process claims or insurance information Provide you with and to evaluate, improve and develop the Services Conduct therapist oversight Control the quality of the Services Permissive reporting of abuse; expressed threats of violence towards an ascertainable victim
Use of the Services Data you provide when you use our therapy service, including: Information you disclose in chat data and your chat sharing preferences (transcripts) Audio/Video communication Documents you share with your therapist via our chat functionality Information collected via our symptom tracker and information on your clinical progress Information collected via chat, telephone, or email support channels Messages that you “star” Information on friends you refer Information you provide as part of treatment intake including emergency contact details, information on your health and mental health and medical history, images (optional) If you use couples therapy, sharing of contact details and some communications will be conducted jointly. If you choose to admit another individual to a therapy “room” for a session, their contact information will be collected and used for that purpose. Information shared through the online chat support feature and your email address.	Through your use of the Services	To provide you with the Services To build, modify, and develop new products, features, and Services. To conduct clinical and other academic research, internally and with approved research partners and identify summary trends or insights for use in external communications (where direct identifiers such as name and contact details have been removed, or pursuant to explicit patient authorization). For more information see “Research” below. See Notice of Privacy Practices. To address patient concerns or complaints To carry out quality assurance and compliance activities To provide you with assistance in the event of an emergency To assist you with questions about the services. To address patient concerns.
Peer Support Services Data you provide when you use Peer Support Services (as defined below), including: Public username Public posts or comments The date and time you submitted the post or comment	Through your use of the Peer Support Services	To enable you to participate in Peer Support Services To moderate your posts or comments To identify signs of an emergency
When Website visitors contact us We collect information when you communicate with us via email or our online support service. This includes information that you provide when you contact us, any information you share through the online chat support feature as well as your email address.	You provide this information to us directly	To respond to and address your communication To provide you with the Services To improve the Services Provide support to users (therapists and patients)
Technical Data Technical information from software or systems hosting the Services, and from the systems, applications and devices that are used to access the Services, such as: Information on the device operating system or Talkspace environment Metrics on system or App feature use Information on system events and status	Automatically through use of the Services	Create anonymized and/or aggregated data to improve and deliver our Services Comply with legal obligations Maintain the security of our infrastructure Facilitate the delivery and optimization of Services Monitor performance of our data centers and networks, systems and applications Provide support to users (therapists and patients) Administer our business continuity and disaster recovery plans and policies Detect, investigate, and remediate stop fraudulent, harmful, unauthorized, or illegal activity (“fraud and abuse detection”) through automated and manual means To provide you with and to evaluate, improve and develop the Services To develop new products
Persistent Identifiers Data collected via cookies, pixels and other tracking technologies (such as Google Analytics and Google Ads), such as: Internet protocol (IP) addresses Device ID Browser type Internet service provider (ISP) Referrer URL Geolocation information (derived from IP Address) Exit pages, the pages and files viewed on our Website (e.g., HTML pages, graphics, etc.) Operating system Date/time stamp NOTE: Once you become a patient the use of cookies, web beacons, pixels, and other processes are limited to ensure that we do not monitor or use patient information for other purposes without your consent.	Collected automatically when you use the Services	To provide you with and to evaluate, improve and develop the Services To develop new products Analyze how our Services are used so we can improve your experience Evaluate the success of our marketing campaigns Marketing, including tailoring advertising

Information Disclosure

Service Providers: We may disclose the information we collect from and about you, including each category of your personal data identified in this Policy, to our service providers to perform a business, commercial, technical, advertising, marketing, analytics, or other support function for us, to help us operate our business, to administer activities on our behalf, or as otherwise described to you at the point of collection.

Partners: We may disclose information described under “Persistent Identifiers” in the above Personal Data Processing chart, to our business partners and third parties, such as data analytics providers, advertising technology vendors, third-party advertising networks, and social media platforms, for purposes of providing personalized advertising, marketing, and analytics-related services.

Legal Compliance and Corporate Transactions: Talkspace may be required to disclose your personal data (a) to government and law enforcement authorities to comply with legal or regulatory obligations or requests, (b) to certain third parties such as an acquiring entity or advisers in the event of a reorganization, merger, sale, joint venture, assignment, transfer, or other disposition of all or any portion of our business, assets, or stock (including in connection with a bankruptcy or similar proceeding), or (c) where we believe disclosure is necessary or appropriate to (i) comply with applicable law, (ii) enforce our terms and conditions; (iii) protect our operations; (iv) protect our rights, privacy, safety, or property, and/or those of you or others; and (v) allow us to pursue available remedies or limit damages that we may sustain.

Consent: Where applicable, we may use or disclose your personal data for other reasons as described to you at the time of data collection or otherwise with your consent.

Using the Talkspace App

The Talkspace App includes third party software development kits (SDKs) from a number of other companies whom we engage as service providers, for identifying and logging code issues, errors and events; managing interactive communication within the App; compiling analytics on which features get used the most; facilitating customer service contacts regarding subscriptions and service; and processing device identifiers and event logs for ad attribution purposes (such as the initial login event, account creation, subscription events). These third parties process data as a service to Talkspace only, pursuant to written agreements. Talkspace does not sell client information to third parties.

Advanced Data Processing

The Talkspace therapy experience is enhanced by advanced data processing activities, carried out in order to measure and improve clinical outcomes. Our proprietary matching algorithm and machine-learning tools provide real-time engagement insights, inform treatment, and track clinical progress, and are fundamental to our precision therapy care delivery model.

Matching Algorithm. During onboarding we ask you to provide information so that we can assess your condition and incorporate your preferences. We then leverage a proprietary algorithm (and/or support from a Talkspace consultant) to match you to a provider.

Optimizing Diagnosis and Treatment. Throughout your experience, your provider uses the Talkspace Services to manage your diagnosis and treatment plan. The advanced machine learning features of our proprietary Services include natural language processing of communications with therapists. A core focus of our machine learning strategy is to provide the therapist with insights on patient needs and behaviours and offer techniques and suggestions that we believe are likely to maximize clinical outcomes. We also use advanced machine learning features to generate therapy notes where requested by our therapists.

Research

Separate and apart from internal healthcare operations and quality assurance activities undertaken for the purpose of delivering and optimizing patient care on the platform, from time to time, Talkspace conducts or participates in research studies with select universities. You may be offered the opportunity to participate in these studies. If your protected health information will be disclosed as part of these studies, your information will only be included with your written authorization. You will be asked to review and accept terms and enrollment separately from the information included in this Policy. Information from these studies may be published by third parties including through various media platforms/academic journals. See our Notice of Privacy Practices.

What choices do you have about how we collect or use your information?

When you create a Talkspace account or otherwise use the Talkspace Services, we collect (or you may provide us with) your email address, and you have the choice to receive newsletters or promotional material about our services at this address. These messages may be tailored to your responses to onboarding surveys so that you receive information relevant to you. You can further manage your email preferences by unsubscribing from emails (via the link in the message), emailing [email protected] or by visiting our online preference center within the App or the Website.
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In addition to your rights as a patient as set out in the Notice of Privacy Practices, you can ask us to:

Stop sending marketing or promotional emails and mobile marketing communications from Talkspace.
Limit the use of cookies, pixels, or web beacons.
If you are a EU, EEA or UK user, you can also exercise the rights set out below.
Certain California residents may have additional rights set out below.
Remove your posts or comments when you use our Peer Support Services.

To ask us about these choices, contact us.

How can I access, delete, or modify my personal data?

You may request access to, correction of, or deletion of your Personal Information. We will honor your request regardless of where you live or are physically located unless a legal requirement prevents us from doing so or a legal exception applies. Please complete the appropriate request form below and email the completed form with a copy of your photo identification to [email protected].

Data Request Forms:

US Privacy Rights

If you are a US resident, depending on where you live, you may have certain rights with respect to your personal data, which includes the right not to be discriminated against for exercising your privacy rights.

You may have the right to request to access the personal data that we have collected about you; delete the personal data we have collected about you, subject to applicable legal exceptions; request a list of the specific third parties to which we have disclosed personal data; request to update or correct your personal data; request to opt out of targeted advertising and/or the sale/sharing of your personal data (where applicable); or to exercise other rights and choices that may be afforded to you under applicable US state privacy laws and regulations.

For more information, please review our Notice of US State Privacy Rights.

EU/EEA/UK Privacy Rights

If you are located in the European Union, the European Economic Area, or the United Kingdom, this Policy is supplemented by our Additional Privacy Statement for EU, EEA and UK Users which explains your privacy rights and how you can exercise these rights (among other matters).

Retention

We will retain your information in accordance with the appropriate statutory limitation periods as required by local law, in line with our legitimate business purposes for as long as your account is active or for as long as needed to provide you with the Services, as required in order to comply with our legal obligations, a court order or to defend or pursue legal claims, in line with industry codes of practice, to resolve disputes and enforce our agreements.

Talkspace and Minors

In the United States, Talkspace may collect information and may provide Services to minors ages 13 – 17 with the written authorization of a parent or guardian. Talkspace does not provide therapeutic services to minors outside of the US.

Other Mobile Applications and Services

This Policy does not apply to any third-party applications or software that you download, or any other third-party websites, mobile applications, or online products, services, or businesses you may access from the Talkspace Website or App.

Applying for a Job at Talkspace

Please see our statement on Candidate Privacy for more information on the personal data we process in connection with recruiting.

Security

We take commercially reasonable steps to protect the integrity and confidentiality of personally identifiable and health information that you may share with us. We have complied with the HIPAA security rule for administrative, technical, and physical security safeguards and have third party assessments of our controls performed annually. However, please be aware that no security measures are perfect or impenetrable and we cannot guarantee the absolute security of your information.

We will do our part to protect your information, but it is important for you to protect your information as well. In addition, we do not control the actions of anyone with whom you or any other Talkspace user may choose to share information. As such, you should be cautious about the access you provide to others when using Talkspace, and the information you choose to share when using the Talkspace website or App.

How to Contact Us

If you have any privacy-related questions or comments related to this Policy, please send an email to [email protected].

Additional Information for EU, EEA and UK Users

Please see our Additional Privacy Statement for EU, EEA and UK Users for further details on your privacy rights, how we share your personal data, international transfers of personal data and retention of personal data.
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We process the personal data described above in accordance with the following legal basis:

With your consent;
As necessary to perform our agreement with you, including when you agree to our Terms of Service;
As necessary for our legitimate interests, such as to provide you with the Services;
As necessary to comply with our legal obligations;
As necessary for the establishment, exercise or defense of legal claims; and
As necessary to protect the vital interests of an individual.

We are a limited liability company established in New York, USA, with a registered office at 157 Columbus Avenue, New York, NY 12567, United States, and, if you are based in the EU, EEA, or UK for the purpose of the EU and UK General Data Protection Regulation, we are the data controller.