How many times a week does someone in your organization scan a document? How many times does that scan head to someone's email? If you answered anything over zero, you need to consider the security of your scanned documents. Until copiers become standalone servers, you’ve got a weak spot.

Many smaller organizations don’t feel the need to focus on security with things like document scanning because they don’t perceive themselves to be a potential target. They don’t handle financial information, for example, or sensitive identity documents. This is a mistake. Let’s take a look at some reasons to consider security with your document scanning and why it matters even for small organizations.

What If We Don’t Carry Sensitive Information?

You may not have your customers’ most sensitive information on hand, but that doesn’t mean what you have isn’t valuable. Hackers often look for correlative data that can give them clues to help unlock sensitive data elsewhere.

If a hacker breaks into an unsecured scan, you may not notice. The hacker retrieves a few phone numbers from customers, including one particular customer whom we’ll call Karen. Phone numbers aren’t much help by themselves, but Karen’s phone number connects two email addresses, a throwaway email that hasn’t been used in years and a current, personal email.

Turns out, hackers already learned the password for the old email through a different security breach, and those two emails have the same password. Karen’s current email is now compromised.

How Do We Protect Our Customers?

The document scanning process is one way hackers can access data because networked machines are just as susceptible to attacks as a computer. Hackers know you’re watching your computer network, but you’re less likely to pay attention to other machines in your system. As companies convert difficult-to-secure paper files to digital, hackers are watching.

You can secure your document scanning so that all your customers’ information is safer. Let’s take a look at three necessary measures you can implement this week:

• Proper Conversion: Converting documents requires a consistent system. Protocols that tell the machine how to label files and where to store them help protect information because every destination is defined. You can also set up encryption parameters.
• Authentication: Do you know who’s using your machine? Login accounts and pin numbers help create a trail and define who is allowed to perform specific functions. If you don’t want everyone in the office scanning and emailing, you can specify that function for upper management.
• Access Control: Define who has access to the scanned document is the final step. Your encryption through email and the authentication process create security and a trail. Now, access to the document is also controlled. No more easy gateways to your information.

Securing Your Data

Don’t rest on the belief that your data isn’t valuable enough to warrant extra security. Building correlating information can give hackers everything they need to get to your customers’ most sensitive information. Working with a professional can help alleviate worries about security and shift the responsibility to someone who can handle security 24/7.