"What Happened When 33,000 People’s Therapy Notes Were Released Onto the Internet"

Listen to this Criminal Podcast

The Criminal podcast published an episode covering a massive hack or leak of 33,000 therapy clients' therapy notes. It's worth listening to if you want to understand the implications of what can happen if this very sensitive data gets out. (And a reminder of how important it is to really think about what data therapists choose to collect, such as session recordings and transcripts.)

This is a text from Jen to Jon. And every other therapist should be talking about this Criminal podcast episode too.

A text message from Jen to Jon about the podcast episode about 33,000 therapy notes being leaked.

It's a crime that took place in 2020 in Finland. But it could happen today. It could happen anywhere.

And this is why it is so important for us all to think -- truly think -- about the data we choose to collect and send and store.

This was a hack that exposed progress notes. And that alone would be so devastating, as this podcast episode illustrates.

Imagine if it was a hack involving session recordings and transcripts too.

Imagine if your clients got emails saying that their most private details would get published if they didn't pay a ransom. And then they were released anyway, and now available for anyone to access... forever. There's no way to undo it.

Again, this took place in 2020 -- before companies encouraged therapists to record and transcribe sessions. And before we all had access to AI. (And hackers have access to AI too, FYI... Which makes it that much easier for them to identify vulnerabilities and security mistakes like the ones involved in this data breach.)

If Phoebe Judge is covering something on Criminal, we think it's worth listening to!

And this podcast episode is absolutely worth the listen. Here's a link: Criminal Podcast: "What Happened When 33,000 People’s Therapy Notes Were Released Onto the Internet"

This is why we (Jen and Jon) will continue to never have Quill record or transcribe sessions. This is why Quill will not unnecessarily store your PHI data. This is why Quill pushes so hard for therapists and clients alike to recognize and truly deliberate the gravity of decisions like introducing an "AI scribe" or "ambient listener" into their therapy sessions.

It's a big deal!

Hacks and data breaches happen. They have in the past (like this one in 2020), and they will continue to happen in the future. Let's recognize that and factor that into our decisions around data.

Text that reads: What Happened When 33,000 People’s Therapy Notes Were Released Onto the Internet

Published on Aug. 28, 2026.

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Quill streamlines progress notes for therapists, saving time by generating notes from a verbal or typed session summary. With privacy at its core, Quill never records client sessions, protecting the therapist-client relationship and avoiding ethical and confidentiality risks. Just record a summary, click a button, and Quill generates your notes for you.

Try Quill for free today, no credit card required. And for unlimited notes (and other types of therapy documentation), it's only $20/month. (Even less for teams.)

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