Most businesses and organisations have a huge number of documents that they need to keep secure, a factor which is massively important. This is perhaps even more crucial when it comes to the public sector, who still rely heavily on physical records, and carry some of the most sensitive information. So, how important is secure document storage within the public sector and how can it be achieved?
Secure document storage
We have all spent time in offices that have reams of paper everywhere, document boxes piled high and rooms full of filing cabinets. These documents are all important, and often have to be kept for a set amount of time, which can take up huge amounts of space, make them difficult to track and leave them relatively vulnerable.
Not only are they at risk of theft, but they can also be easily lost, particularly in the case of a disaster such as a flood or a fire. That is why secure document storage is now so important.
Secure document storage allows for all of these paper documents to be stored digitally, meaning that there is less paper lying around, sensitive items can be encrypted and hidden behind multiple layers of security and back-ups can be kept, ensuring that nothing is lost. It is now becoming one of the key ways that all types of businesses are protecting themselves against data losses and breaches, as well as saving themselves huge amounts of money and space.
Public sector documents
Whilst all businesses are under threat from data breaches, this can be of particular concern within the public sector. Keeping documents in a physical format leaves them at much greater risk of being stolen or left on a park bench.
These documents can range from personal details that can be used for identity theft, health records and financial data, which can be incredibly threatening for the individuals and a massive problem for the authorities involved. Recent studies have shown that the total global cost of a data breach in the public sector rose by nearly 79% between 2020 and 2021, and in the US, this came at a cost of $1.93 million each.
As the public sector holds so much information about its citizens, it is of incredible importance that it is protected. In many factors, the public sector is often slower than many other businesses to adapt to new ways of working, new threats and new forms of security, which can make them an even bigger target. Once data is lost, there is no control over how and where it is shared, or even when it is destroyed, often making it irretrievable.
The threat that the public sector faces in regard to the documents it holds is possibly greater than in any other walk of life, which is why there is an even greater responsibility to keep it safe. Secure document storage is an easy way to do this to ensure that the data that is held is protected from loss, whether it is accidental or deliberate.
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