An ultrasound system and method enable ultrasonic imaging by inexperienced personnel under the guidance of a remotely located diagnostic imaging expert. Improper use of the scanning device is prevented by controlling the device to present only low quality images to the person conducting the scan, while images of high quality are sent to the remote expert for diagnosis. Thus, an effective diagnosis by the expert is facilitated while providing at the scanning site only images which, while sufficient to provide visual guidance of the scanning procedure, cannot be used improperly by persons at the site of the patient being scanned.