Document control: protecting confidential business information
The business cases for document
control software often focus on the
potential for boosting employee
efficiency and productivity ‐‐ and
therefore profitability. There's no
question that saving time and
reducing costs is universally
appealing to management teams.
However, one of the most important
considerations for any business
evaluating a document management
system (DMS) is how to effectively
secure and protect confidential
information.
To safeguard sensitive information
from threats originating outside of
the organization, IT teams routinely
employ firewalls, anti‐virus solutions
and other protective measures. But
studies by Gartner identify
employees as the culprits in 70% of
the instances involving unauthorized
access to confidential content. In
those cases with significant financial
losses, the same studies determined
that employees were involved in 95%
of the incidents.
Paper files are particularly
vulnerable to employee information
breaches and account for
approximately half of all the reported
access violations, as cited in reports
from Ponemon Institute. It is difficult
to know where a paper document
has been, as well as who has seen it
or copied it.
Transitioning from paper to an
electronic document management
environment is the first step in
properly securing sensitive
information because it creates a
starting point for establishing
effective document controls.
However, going paperless is only the
first step. Electronic files scattered
among hard drives, laptops and
servers must be tracked and
controlled and, without a formal
document management system in
place, anyone can view, copy, share
or delete digital content with a few
keystrokes.
An effective document management
system not only provides a single
system for storing and managing all
confidential information, but it also
logs the history of all actions for each
file and record. When business and IT
managers have the ability to define,
regulate and audit document access
privileges, the document
management system becomes an
effective deterrent to inappropriate
or inadvertent employee behavior.
The high costs and liability associated
with information security breaches
underscores the importance of
ensuring an organization’s sensitive
documents are protected from
unauthorized access. Defining and
enforcing policies and processes for
authorized access to confidential
information is of paramount
importance for companies of all sizes
and in all industries.
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