In any document conversion, the risk of data being breached should be considered and appropriate security precautions taken. The way a business operates in the current century is different in many aspects than it was earlier. With the increase in number of data breaches, threats and hacking, proper documentation has proven to be an area that needs more focus. As of June 2015, the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) has identified a total of 380 breaches in several industries such as business, banking, educational, military and healthcare.
The largest data breach in the medical industry happened on April 3, 2015 at Oregon’s Health CO-OP, which impacted 14,000 individuals. An employee’s laptop that contains member and dependent names, addresses, health plan and identification numbers, dates of birth and social security numbers was stolen. Also, during the breach notification process, certain members received letters with another person’s name due to a system error. A cyber security firm was hired to review the security of systems and provide recommendations for reinforcing security and technology protocols.
For a business to stay competitive in the field, it should implement comprehensive documentation strategies. Certain factors that may control businesses in the coming ages include:
Digitization becomes crucial – Organizations are now integrating various policies to reduce the amount of paper that they produce. Though paper cannot be avoided completely, many document conversion and management services are available that help offices reduce paper consumption. Digitization solutions in businesses can help to:
- Save space
- Streamline operations
- Improve file accessibility
- Ensure superior data security
Perfectly formatted information will be expected on all devices – Whether the business is using a desktop/PC, laptop or even smartphone to deal with its daily documentation, formats that can maintain document layout such as PDF and TIFF will be preferred more. E-book files are available in a variety of formats such as EPUB and MOBI for use on various tablets and e-reader devices and software.
Data security becomes more important than ever – Hacking attacks and security breaches serve as reminders regarding how crucial it is to secure data in any business. Even data in government organizations are not safe. The recent massive hack was on the Office of Personnel Management. While initial reports indicated that 4 million federal employees’ data was stolen, a letter to the OPM director by the president of the American Federation of Government Employees, indicates that the breach affects all current federal employees, every federal retiree, and up to one million former federal employees. Further, the letter also declares that social security numbers and other forms of sensitive information were not encrypted.
Cloud-based data storage operated by leading providers such as Amazon, Google, and Rackspace can be used. These providers have the domain expertise that is crucial to deliver better data security. Obtaining professional document conversion and management services from reputable firms that implement high security measures can also ensure secured data.
