Security of documents is a major issue due to the confidential nature of the documents that are processed by companies. If data falls into the improper hands, it could affect a company’s reputation and its bottom line. It can also lead to fines and other legal action.
Document security is the process of creating and enforcing guidelines on what information can be shared, who may access it, and the best way to protect it. It requires training for all employees and the use of secure equipment to limit access to sensitive data and it’s vital that everyone is aware of how to follow these protocols.
There are many security risks to be considered, including human error (e.g. an employee loses an actual document) and hacking attacks. It is also possible for data to be breached while in transit between devices, making it important that software and hardware is regularly updated.
Passwords, login protection, and features such as redaction (removing certain types of information) and tracking open are all essential for protecting digital files. These features can deter users from sharing their data in a way that makes it difficult for users to conceal the amount of times a document was opened. These measures can be significantly enhanced when they’re paired with other protocols for document security.
For example, imagine you have a contract or bid that expires in a set date and you need to ensure that it’s not accessible after the deadline is over. Document expiry, revocation access, and self-destruct are some of the options that can be used to achieve this.