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VA Technical Reference Model v 25.4

Dragon Professional Individual

General Information

Technologies must be operated and maintained in accordance with Federal and Department security and privacy policies and guidelines. More information on the proper use of the TRM can be found on the TRM Proper Use Tab/Section.

Website:	Go to site
Description:	Dragon Professional Individual is a speech recognition solution empowering users voice to work to complete documentation and reporting quickly and accurately on the Personnel Computer (PC). Dragon lets users create documents, reports, emails, forms, surf the internet, and control PC by speaking. This technology does not utilize a database.
Technology/Standard Usage Requirements:	Users must ensure their use of this technology/standard is consistent with VA policies and standards, including, but not limited to, VA Handbooks 6102 and 6500; VA Directives 6004, 6513, and 6517; and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards, including Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS). Users must ensure sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. Prior to use of this technology, users should check with their supervisor, Information System Security Officer (ISSO), Facility Chief Information Officer (CIO), or local Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) representative to ensure that all actions are consistent with current VA policies and procedures prior to implementation.
Section 508 Information:	This technology has not been assessed by the Section 508 Office. The Implementer of this technology has the responsibility to ensure the version deployed is 508-compliant. Section 508 compliance may be reviewed by the Section 508 Office and appropriate remedial action required if necessary. For additional information or assistance regarding Section 508, please contact the Section 508 Office at Section508@va.gov.
Decision:	View Decisions

Decision Source:	TRM Mgmt Group
Decision Process:	One-VA TRM v25.4
Decision Date:	04/14/2025 at 15:44:32 UTC
Aliases:	Dragon Professional
Introduced By:	TRM Request
Vendor Name:	Nuance

Vendor Release Information

The Vendor Release table provides the known releases for the TRM Technology, obtained from the vendor (or from the release source).

You must be logged into the RSAA website prior to clicking the Attestation URLs or the URLs won't open.

Major versions and minor versions of that Major released on or after 09/14/2022 are NOT EXEMPT. Major Versions released before 09/14/2022 are EXEMPT as well as minor versions of that Major regardless of release date.

Version	Release Date	Vendor End of Life Date	Vendor Desupport Date
15.x	11/24/2022
16.x	02/28/2023

Current Decision Matrix (04/09/2025)

Users must ensure their use of this technology/standard is consistent with VA policies and standards, including, but not limited to, VA Handbooks 6102 and 6500; VA Directives 6004, 6513, and 6517; and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards, including Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS). Users must ensure sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. Prior to use of this technology, users should check with their supervisor, Information System Security Officer (ISSO), Facility Chief Information Officer (CIO), or local Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) representative to ensure that all actions are consistent with current VA policies and procedures prior to implementation.

The VA Decision Matrix displays the current and future VAIT position regarding different releases of a TRM entry. These decisions are based upon the best information available as of the most current date. The consumer of this information has the responsibility to consult the organizations responsible for the desktop, testing, and/or production environments to ensure that the target version of the technology will be supported.

Legend:

White	Authorized: The technology/standard has been authorized for use.
Yellow	Authorized w/ Constraints: The technology/standard can be used within the specified constraints located below the decision matrix in the footnote[1] and on the General tab.
Gray	Authorized w/ Constraints (POA&M): This technology or standard can be used only if a POA&M review is conducted and signed by the Authorizing Official Designated Representative (AODR) as designated by the Authorizing Official (AO) or designee and based upon a recommendation from the POA&M Compliance Enforcement, has been granted to the project team or organization that wishes to use the technology.
Orange	Authorized w/ Constraints (DIVEST): VA has decided to divest itself on the use of the technology/standard. As a result, all projects currently utilizing the technology/standard must plan to eliminate their use of the technology/standard. Additional information on when the entry is projected to become unauthorized may be found on the Decision tab for the specific entry.
Black	Unauthorized: The technology/standard is not (currently) permitted to be used under any circumstances.
Blue	Authorized w/ Constraints (PLANNING/EVALUATION): The period of time this technology is currently being evaluated, reviewed, and tested in controlled environments. Use of this technology is strictly controlled and not available for use within the general population. If a customer would like to use this technology, please work with your local or Regional OI&T office and contact the appropriate evaluation office displayed in the notes below the decision matrix. The Local or Regional OI&T office should submit an inquiry to the TRM if they require further assistance or if the evaluating office is not listed in the notes below.

Release/Version Information:

VA decisions for specific versions may include a ‘.x’ wildcard, which denotes a decision that pertains to a range of multiple versions.

For example, a technology authorized with a decision for 7.x would cover any version of 7.(Anything) - 7.(Anything). However, a 7.4.x decision would cover any version of 7.4.(Anything), but would not cover any version of 7.5.x or 7.6.x on the TRM.

VA decisions for specific versions may include ‘+’ symbols; which denotes that the decision for the version specified also includes versions greater than what is specified but is not to exceed or affect previous decimal places.

For example, a technology authorized with a decision for 12.6.4+ would cover any version that is greater than 12.6.4, but would not exceed the .6 decimal ie: 12.6.401 is ok, 12.6.5 is ok, 12.6.9 is ok, however 12.7.0 or 13.0 is not.

Any major.minor version that is not listed in the VA Decision Matrix is considered Authorized w/ Constraints (POA&M).

<Past

CY2024

CY2025

CY2026

Future>

Release

15.x

DIVEST
[1, 3, 4, 5, 6]

Authorized w/ Constraints (POA&M)

16.x

Approved w/Constraints
[1, 3, 4, 5, 6]

Authorized w/ Constraints
[1, 3, 4, 5, 6]

Authorized w/ Constraints
[3, 4, 5, 6, 7]

Note:

At the time of writing, version 16.0 is the most current version, released 02/28/2023.

Decision Constraints


[1]	This technology requires using a Universal Service Bus (USB) technology to transfer data into the records. As such, proper precautions need to be taken to protect data. Users must utilize authorized internet browsers, as Microsoft Internet Explorer has reached End of Life status. See Category Tab for details. This technology can utilize commercial cloud storage options (Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, Dropbox, etc.) These services are prohibited in the VA and these options must not be utilized.

[3]	This product includes a Bluetooth capability. If that capability is leveraged, the implementer must conform to the Bluetooth Standard. All instances of deployment using this technology should be reviewed by the local ISSO (Information System Security Officer) to ensure compliance with VA Handbook 6500.

[4]	The Federal Information Processing standards (FIPS) 140-2 certification status of this technology was not able to be verified. This technology will require a 3rd party FIPS 140-2 or 140-3 certified solution for any data containing PHI/PII or VA sensitive information, where applicable. More information regarding the Cryptographic Module Validation Program (CMVP) can be found on the NIST website.

[5]	Technology must remain patched and operated in accordance with Federal and Department security policies and guidelines in order to mitigate known and future security vulnerabilities.

[6]	Veterans Affairs (VA) users must ensure VA sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. All instances of deployment using this technology should be reviewed by the local ISSO (Information System Security Officer) to ensure compliance with both VA Handbook 6500 and VA Directive 6500.

[7]	This technology requires using a Universal Service Bus (USB) technology to transfer data into the records. As such, proper precautions need to be taken to protect data. This technology should not be utilizing commercial storage options, such as Google Drive and Dropbox, as they require a POA&M in the VA. Users must not utilize DropBox, as it, at the time of writing, requires a POA&M. Users must not utilize Evernote, as it, at the time of writing, requires a POA&M. Users must ensure that Firefox, Google Chrome, and Microsoft Edge are implemented with VA-authorized baselines. (refer to the ‘Category’ tab under ‘Runtime Dependencies’)

Name	Description
No components have been identified for this entry.


Health Care Administrative	Health Delivery Support

General Analysis

Adoption Benefits

This is a well-documented technology.
At the time of writing, no National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) vulnerabilities had been reported and no VA Cyber Security Operations Center (CSOC) bulletins had been issued for the latest versions of this technology.
This technology may improve productivity for specific staff whose responsibilities include the ability to dictate into a dedicated speech recognition box and then copy and paste the text into another box.

Adoption Risks

The potential exists to store Personally Identifiable Information (PII), Protected Health Information (PHI) and/or VA Sensitive data and proper security standards must be followed in these cases.
This technology involves the use Bluetooth connections and proper security precautions must be taken when used.
There is no indication based on either the vendor documentation or the Cryptographic Module Validation Program (CMVP) that this technology is Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 140-2 compliant.
This technology can potentially use DropBox which requires a POA&M for use on the VA network.
This technology can potentially use Evernote which requires a POA&M for use on the VA network.
The potential of vendor lock exists when utilizing proprietary vendor technology.
Due to the rapid release schedule of this technology, the VA may be unable to update to the most recent patch and may require a deployment model requiring the use of specific versions.
This technology involves the use Universal Serial Bus (USB) connections and proper security precautions must be taken when used.
There are other authorized solutions that provide similar functionality available on the TRM. The use of several similar solutions may increase organization requirements for support and maintenance.

Architectural Benefits

This technology is compatible with multiple other Technical Reference Model (TRM) technologies and standards used by the organization.

Architectural Risks

This technology is not portable as it runs only on Windows platforms.

- The information contained on this page is accurate as of the Decision Date (04/14/2025 at 15:44:32 UTC).

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VA Technical Reference Model v 25.4

General Information

Vendor Release Information

Current Decision Matrix (04/09/2025)

Decision Constraints

References

Technology Components

VA Categories

View the VA Categorization Framework

Operating Systems Supported by the Technology

Technologies/Standards Relationships

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Comparable Technologies:

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General Analysis

Adoption Benefits

Adoption Risks

Architectural Benefits

Architectural Risks

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VA Technical Reference Model v 25.4

General Information

Vendor Release Information

Current Decision Matrix (04/09/2025)

Decision Constraints

References

Technology Components

VA Categories View the VA Categorization Framework

Operating Systems Supported by the Technology

Technologies/Standards Relationships

Runtime Dependencies:

Optional Dependencies:

Comparable Technologies:

Companion Technologies/Supported Standards:

General Analysis

Adoption Benefits

Adoption Risks

Architectural Benefits

Architectural Risks

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VA Categories

View the VA Categorization Framework