A Guide to Sharing Sensitive Healthcare Marketing Security Data with Vendors

Sharing third-party data and granting access to digital platforms has become standard practice across industries such as finance, supply chain management, and healthcare. For medical professionals, working with a medical marketing agency or outside vendors often involves handing over keys to essential tools like a Google Ad account, Facebook Ad account, or Business Manager, Google My Business, domain registration, and even email systems. These arrangements allow practices to leverage specialized expertise, but they also highlight the critical need for oversight, control, and cybersecurity.

In the healthcare space, particularly with dental marketing services and broader healthcare marketing services, partnerships with healthcare marketing companies open the door to significant benefits. A well-managed collaboration can accelerate practice growth, improve visibility through advertising, and strengthen online reputation management. At the same time, providing access to sensitive assets requires trust in third-party marketers who must balance campaign execution with strict digital marketing compliance and patient privacy standards.

For any medical professional, the decision to share data and access with a medical marketing company is not just about convenience—it’s about long-term control and security. While these partnerships can elevate a practice’s brand and expand reach through platforms like Google and Facebook, they also carry risks if safeguards are not established. From email security protocols to contractual ownership of domains and social accounts, the nuances of vendor collaboration demand careful planning to protect both the practice and its patients.

Key Areas of Third-Party Access

When partnering with a medical marketing agency or other healthcare marketing companies, medical professionals are often granted access to a wide range of digital platforms. Each of these systems plays a unique role in marketing, compliance, and daily operations, but they also come with different security considerations. Understanding how each works—and the risks of handing over permissions—is essential for protecting both the practice and patient trust.

Google Ads Account Management Sharing

Google Ads accounts are tied to a Gmail or Google Workspace login, meaning ownership is linked to the Google account that originally created the profile. Marketing agencies often operate through a manager account (MCC) that houses multiple client accounts, while healthcare practices that set up advertising on their own typically have only a single standalone account. Once established, permissions can be assigned at various levels, allowing agencies or clients to grant access as needed. However, several key considerations come into play:

• New Account Creation – When no Google Ads account exists, a marketing agency will often create one on behalf of the practice. While this is convenient, ownership remains with the party that created the account, along with the historical data and campaign structure. Unless specifically agreed upon, the agency controls whether and how the practice receives access. Practices seeking full transparency or long-term retention should clarify account ownership and access expectations in advance.
   
• Account Sharing vs. Replacement – Even if a practice already has a Google Ads account, some agencies may prefer to set up a new one. This is often done to avoid issues tied to poor historical performance, outdated structures, or policy violations that could limit future campaign results. Agencies also assume accountability for outcomes and may want to minimize client-side interference. A common challenge arises when clients with full access make changes—either by following Google’s automated AI recommendations or through well-intentioned trial and error. While these changes may seem helpful, they can disrupt carefully planned strategies and undermine campaign performance.
   
• Billing and Payment Management – Billing arrangements are among the most sensitive aspects of account control. Agencies with account ownership will manage billing directly, covering ad costs upfront and invoicing clients based on agreed budgets. This ensures campaigns continue without interruption if a credit card expires or is compromised, but it exposes the agency’s billing profile to financial risk. Because Google Ads budgets can fluctuate slightly month to month, agencies must closely monitor spending to avoid being left with an overage. By contrast, when the practice controls billing with its own credit card, the financial risk shifts back to the client. While this approach offers more transparency and control, it also requires the client to actively maintain billing methods and monitor budgets. Without clear oversight, ad spend may exceed expectations, leaving the client exposed to unplanned costs.

The Ownership Debate in Google Ads

There is an ongoing debate among healthcare professionals and marketers regarding Google Ads account ownership. Many medical professionals argue that since they are funding the campaigns, they should rightfully own both the account and its data. Agencies often agree in principle but emphasize that ownership is non-transferable—it remains permanently tied to the Google account that created it. Managing ads and its control carries significant considerations.

When a healthcare marketing agency creates and manages the account, it assumes several liabilities. These liabilities include responsibility for account balances, maintaining policy compliance that could affect the agency’s broader manager account, and exposure to security concerns. Providing client access can increase the likelihood of policy violations, campaign interference, or billing complications that may lead to financial loss. Moreover, when a client relationship ends, lingering account access can heighten security risks, as the agency is ultimately responsible for activity within its manager account.

On the other hand, when the practice retains ownership, it ensures long-term access and control, but the client must take a more proactive role in account oversight. Meanwhile, the agency must adapt its processes to work within an account it does not directly manage. This dynamic makes it essential to clarify account ownership, billing responsibilities, and access rights before any campaign is launched.

Agency Maintains Google Ads Account Ownership

• Pros:
  • Faster setup and streamlined deployment
  • Reduced client responsibility for day-to-day management
  • Agency assumes liability for account policy compliance; if suspended, the agency must resolve it
  • Agency manages billing and payment responsibilities
  • Minimizes risk of client-side interference with campaigns
  • Agency can enforce stronger internal security protocols
• Cons:
  • Limited client transparency into campaign operations and billing
  • Restricted client control over assets and permissions
  • Potential loss of account history and data if the relationship ends
  • Dependence on the agency for access continuity

Healthcare Professional or Client Maintains Ownership

• Pros:
  • Retains all historical performance data and insights
  • Maintains full administrative control over the account and assets
  • Long-term stability and continuity, even if agencies change
  • Greater transparency into billing and campaign management
• Cons:
  • Client assumes liability for policy compliance and violations
  • Client is responsible for maintaining and updating the billing profile
  • Requires a more proactive approach to account oversight
  • Greater risk of accidental interference with agency-managed campaigns

Facebook Ads and Business Manager

Facebook (Meta) Ad account management functions in a way that is broadly similar to Google Ads but with some important differences. To run ads on Facebook, a business must create a Meta Business Portfolio (formerly Business Manager), which serves as the umbrella structure for managing Facebook Ad Accounts, Pages, audiences, and permissions. Within this structure, a Facebook Ads Account is created. Marketers can then assign role-based access to third parties, much like in Google Ads. However, ownership rules are stricter: a Facebook Business Page can only be owned by one Business Manager, though it may be shared with others through Partner access. This differs from Google, where multiple accounts can be managed more flexibly under a single MCC structure.

Facebook also enforces account integrity more rigorously, with policy violations both more common and often harder to resolve if accounts are not actively maintained. Through Business Manager, advertisers can run campaigns, manage targeting, and monitor performance results. Because of this stricter enforcement environment, strong security practices—such as two-factor authentication for all users—are essential to protect access and maintain compliance.

1. New Facebook Ad Account Creation – If no Business Manager account exists, an agency may create one on behalf of the practice. However, as with Google Ads, ownership of a Business Manager account cannot be transferred; it remains permanently tied to the entity that set it up. In practice, many marketers use their own Business Manager and create a new Ads account within it to manage client campaigns. Ads accounts must be tied to the client’s existing Facebook Business Page in order to run ads. Creating a brand-new Business Page instead of using the existing one is strongly discouraged, as it can undermine brand reputation and disrupt patient trust.
   
   If no Business Page exists, it can be easily created and later reassigned to another Facebook user or organization through role changes. That said, the Business Manager and Ads account themselves always remain under the ownership of the entity that created them, making it essential to clarify at the start which Business Manager controls the Page and its assets.
    
2. Account Sharing vs. Replacement – Even if a practice already has a Business Manager account, some agencies may prefer to create a new Ads account under their own Business Manager. This can help bypass restricted accounts, poor historical performance, or policy violations tied to the original setup. However, it also shifts control further away from the practice.
    
3. Billing Structures – Payment for Facebook advertising can be tied either to the practice’s credit card or to the agency’s billing system. If the agency pays upfront and invoices the practice, administration is simplified, but the agency also retains full control over billing and account continuity. The drawback is that the client may lose visibility into ad spend and historical billing records. Conversely, when the practice manages billing directly, it maintains transparency, historical accountability, and campaign rights—an arrangement many healthcare professionals prefer for long-term control.

The Ownership Debate in Facebook Ads

Like Google Ads, Facebook Ads management comes with a long-standing debate over ownership. Healthcare professionals often argue that, because they fund campaigns and provide the business identity, they should control both the Business Page and the Ads account. Agencies generally acknowledge this perspective but point out that ownership within Meta Business Manager is not transferable, and client ownership introduces new hurdles for agencies—including increased responsibility on the client’s side for compliance, billing, and security oversight.

When a healthcare marketing agency owns the Business Manager and Ads account, it gains greater control over security, billing, compliance, and campaign deployment. If the agency manages payments under its own billing profile, administration is simplified, but future access for the client is limited, and any post-relationship access increases the agency’s liability for policy or billing issues.

On the other hand, when the practice owns the Business Manager, it ensures long-term stability and direct access to campaign data. Access can easily be extended to agencies or vendors as needed, but the agency may face restrictions when operating under a client-owned account.

Agency Maintains Facebook Ads Account Ownership

• Pros:
  • Faster setup and streamlined deployment
  • Reduced client responsibility for day-to-day management
  • Agency assumes liability for account policy compliance; if suspended, the agency must resolve it
  • Agency manages billing and payment responsibilities
  • Minimizes risk of client-side interference with campaigns
  • Agency can enforce stronger internal security protocols
• Cons:
  • Limited client transparency into campaign operations and billing
  • Restricted client control over assets and permissions
  • Potential loss of account history and data if the relationship ends
  • Dependence on the agency for access continuity
  • Complicated handoff if the relationship ends—Business Page assignments must be released, which can create risks and delays

Healthcare Professional or Client Maintains Facebook Ads Ownership

• Pros:
  • Retains all historical performance data and insights
  • Maintains full administrative control over the account and assets
  • Ensures long-term stability and continuity, even if agencies change
  • Greater transparency into billing and campaign management
  • Easier to transfer marketing services
• Cons:
  • Client assumes liability for policy compliance and violations
  • Client is responsible for maintaining and updating the billing profile
  • Requires a more proactive approach to account oversight
  • Higher risk of accidental interference with agency-managed campaigns

The question of account ownership in both Google and Facebook advertising remains a significant point of debate between healthcare professionals and agencies. Many medical practices, having experienced poor marketing practices in the past, prefer to retain full control to protect their investment and data. While this path offers security, it also places additional responsibility on the practice to manage compliance, billing, and oversight.

On the other hand, professional marketing agencies work more efficiently when they are granted greater control. This allows them to manage campaigns proactively, address issues quickly, and implement strategies without interruption. The challenge, of course, is that trust is essential. Without confidence in an agency’s integrity and expertise, ceding ownership feels risky.

For that reason, healthcare professionals should carefully vet any potential partner. Requesting referrals, understanding an agency’s policies, and clarifying ownership and billing structures in writing can reduce uncertainty. In many cases, the most effective relationships are built on transparency: medical marketing agencies retain long-term rights to their digital assets and are empowered with the access they need to deliver results. With clear expectations, both sides can protect their interests and create a partnership that drives sustainable growth.

By clearly defining these categories of access, medical professionals can collaborate effectively with outside partners while still safeguarding their most important digital and operational assets.