Professional secrecy in Switzerland (Art. 321 StGB) and AI

Who is bound by professional secrecy in Switzerland?

Art. 321 of the Swiss Criminal Code (StGB) lists the professions exhaustively. They include doctors, dentists, chiropractors, pharmacists, midwives, psychologists, clergy, lawyers, notaries and auditors, and also their auxiliary persons. According to the guide by SAMS and FMH (the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences and the Swiss Medical Association), auxiliary persons include medical practice assistants, nursing staff and laboratory staff; the term is understood broadly.

Protected is everything that was confided to one of these persons in their profession or that they observed in doing so, even the fact that someone is being treated. Anyone who discloses such a secret is liable, upon complaint, to a custodial sentence of up to three years or a monetary penalty. Disclosure is not punishable with the consent of the person entitled or with the written authorisation of the cantonal supervisory authority (Art. 321 para. 2 StGB).

Provision	Who it concerns	What applies
Art. 321 StGB	Professional secrecy holders and their auxiliary persons	Custodial sentence of up to three years or a monetary penalty, upon complaint
Art. 320 StGB	Members of authorities and officials, including doctors with public duties	Official secrecy
Art. 62 FADP	Anyone who learns of secret personal data in their profession	Fine of up to 250,000 Swiss francs, upon complaint
Art. 9 FADP	Controllers who use a processor	Contract; no duty of secrecy may stand in the way

Is an AI provider an auxiliary person?

According to the prevailing view, yes, if it supports the professional secrecy holder in their work and has access to secrets in doing so. The Swiss Bar Association states that auxiliary persons are never unauthorised third parties within the meaning of Art. 321 StGB. The condition is that the provider is contractually bound to secrecy and that the arrangement holds up to a case-by-case risk assessment. Experts apply this view to IT and cloud providers in general; an AI provider that drafts medical reports or searches files supports professional work in this sense.

The legal position is not settled in every detail. Some legal scholars interpret the term auxiliary person more narrowly, especially for providers abroad. If you want to be on the safe side, combine the contractual arrangement with technical measures and, where appropriate, with information for patients and clients.

What belongs in the contract with the AI provider?

• Secrecy: an explicit statement that the provider, as an auxiliary person, is subject to professional secrecy, and an obligation on its staff and any further processors
• Purpose limitation: data only for the assignment, no training of the provider’s own models
• Processing under Art. 9 FADP: the provider processes data only as you yourself would be permitted to; data security is ensured; further processors only with your authorisation
• Location of processing and access: where the platform, the AI model and backups are located and who can access them
• Requests from authorities: how the provider handles demands for disclosure and whether it informs you

What applies to providers abroad?

Under Art. 16 FADP (Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection), personal data may be disclosed abroad if the Federal Council has certified that the state has an adequate level of protection. This applies to the EU member states, and therefore to Germany. For the USA, it has applied since 15 September 2024 only to companies certified under the Swiss-U.S. Data Privacy Framework.

For professional secrecy, being permissible under data protection law is not enough on its own. The Swiss Bar Association cites the US CLOUD Act as an example of possible access by foreign authorities that belongs in the risk assessment. More on this in the guide US CLOUD Act.

How does this work with basebox?

basebox offers the AI platform in Switzerland as a cloud and as a server. A data centre in Switzerland for the cloud is in progress, by 2027 at the latest. Until then, the cloud also runs in Germany for Swiss customers; each organisation gets its own environment, separate from other customers. With the server, basebox runs on hardware dedicated to you, without an internet connection if you wish; our hardware partner FAST LTA delivers the server to Switzerland through a local partner, and it then stands on your premises. Without an operating contract, basebox has no access to your data. Your data does not train any model. The interface and support are available in German and English.

For Swiss customers, two annexes supplement the licence agreement and the DPA:

• Confidentiality agreement under Art. 321 and Art. 320 StGB: basebox acts as an auxiliary person. All staff deployed are bound to secrecy in writing, with a note on criminal liability, also beyond the end of the contract. basebox only involves sub-processors who are bound by the same obligation.
• Supplement to the DPA under the FADP: processing under Art. 9 FADP, further processors only with your authorisation, reporting of data security breaches under Art. 24 FADP.

Both annexes and the DPA are available for download at /sicherheit#sec-schweiz.

Not legal advice: This article gives an overview of Swiss professional secrecy when using AI. Cantonal law, professional rules and the practice of supervisory authorities may differ. The legal text on Fedlex and the assessment by your legal adviser are decisive. Research as of: 11 October 2026.