On October 4th, 2007 Microsoft released the beta version of its HealthVault product, aimed at helping healthcare consumers manage their own health records online.

The service offers health care consumers the ability to create pages with their health information that can be accessed by health providers. Patients can fax information to their accounts, control the privacy of their information and share it as needed.

Currently, the service boasts collaborations with organizations like the American Heart Association, HealthMedia and devices like Lifescan and Microlife.

Acknowledging the HIPAA concerns that have been prominent in discussions of online health records databases, the company lists part of its privacy notice prominently on the front page:

1. The Microsoft HealthVault record you create is controlled by you.
2. You decide what goes into your HealthVault record.
3. You decide who can see and use your information on a case-by-case basis.
4. We do not use your health information for commercial purposes unless we ask and you clearly tell us we may.

As additional security, Microsoft's HealthVault service requires a Windows Live ID and a HealthVault account and both prompt users to creat complex passwords.