Final answer:
HIPAA violation
The improper release of a patient's PHI is known as a HIPAA violation, which is a breach of health privacy laws established by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996.
Step-by-step explanation:
The term for the improper release of a patient's Protected Health Information (PHI) is a HIPAA violation. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, commonly referred to as HIPAA, established requirements for the protection of health information. If an individual's PHI is disclosed without their permission, this constitutes a HIPAA violation. Examples include disclosing a patient's diagnosis to parties not authorized to receive it, such as calling a patient's sexual partners without consent, potentially breaching privacy rights. It should be noted that a HIPAA violation can lead to a data breach, although the two terms are not synonymous; a data breach is a broader concept that may include hacker attacks or other forms of unauthorized data access beyond the scope of personal health information.