Is cloud faxing safe? Yes. Submissive? It depends.

Cloud fax makes it easy to send and receive faxes over the Internet with the same level of security and privacy as traditional faxes.

Widely used in the financial, legal and medical sectors, it seems compliant with strict privacy and security standards, right? While cloud fax may be compliant, it depends on the specific regulations you need to meet, how it’s implemented, and the provider you choose.

There is no doubt: cloud fax is better than traditional fax

Because cloud fax uses the Internet and remote cloud servers, you don’t need on-site equipment, a dedicated phone line, or a fax machine. Instead, all you need is a subscription to digital faxing software.

Setup takes less than 15 minutes, just like subscribing to other online tools you use. Nothing could be simpler.

Once set up, you can easily send and receive faxes using the software.

Many of them also allow you to read faxes received directly from your inbox and send them in the same way as standard e-mail.

In addition to convenience and easy configuration, cloud fax provides a number of other benefits:

Send and receive faxes on any device with Internet access.
Significant cost savings as you don’t need ink, paper or equipment.
Streamlined file management with digital storage and retrieval.
Greater efficiency and availability for your team.
Unlimited scalability as your business grows.
Reduction of paper and energy consumption.
Deeper integration with other business tools.

I mentioned in the introduction that cloud fax provides the same level of security, but that’s not entirely true – it actually provides better protection.

Cloud fax security and privacy

Traditional faxing methods, while somewhat secure, have security vulnerabilities. Physical documents can be left for anyone to see, and malicious actors can intercept transmitted faxes because there is no encryption.

With cloud faxing, you don’t have to worry about anything – there are no physical copies and the entire transmission process is highly encrypted.

Even if someone manages to intercept a digital fax, they will not have the key to decrypt it.

What’s more, you get a full digital audit trail of everything that’s sent and received. You can trace each fax back to its origin, including date, time and sender or recipient.

Access control allows administrators to limit access to certain functions as well. Users can decide who can see their messages, how long they can see them, when they are deleted and where they are saved. Overall, there is much more control and unfiltered visibility at every step of the process.

Two-factor authentication is another layer of security to keep your accounts safe.

The details of all these protections depend on the provider and plan you choose. However, cloud faxing is usually more secure if it follows modern encryption and access control protocols.

Most cloud faxing solutions worth considering are able to meet (and even exceed) various regulations, including:

Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA): It requires financial institutions to explain all their practices regarding sharing information with consumers and protecting all types of sensitive data they handle.
Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX): It covers the secure storage and transmission of financial records of listed companies.
Payment card industry (PCI): Refers to 12 industry standards for the security of consumer credit card information.
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA): Orders to protect students’ records.
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR): It establishes strict privacy and security measures to protect the personal data of EU citizens.
Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Security Policy: It sets a standard for law enforcement and criminal justice agencies that handle sensitive information.
Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA): Requires companies that work with federal agencies to protect government data.
ISO/IEC 27001: Ensures confidentiality, integrity and availability of data worldwide. This is not a regulation, but an international standard that many companies strive to meet.

It’s important to note that just because cloud fax companies are able to meet these requirements doesn’t mean they do it out of the box.

In fact, most don’t meet these standards until you take further steps.

Many of these require additional agreements and internal policies on how the system is used, such as regular security scanning for PCI compliance, audit trails for FERPA, a GDPR data processing agreement, and a security supplement for CJIS.

If you must adhere to such stringent guidelines, it is your responsibility to understand them internally and externally and work with your supplier to ensure your system is always compliant.

What about HIPAA compliance?

Like the standards we’ve already discussed, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is designed to secure personal information. Specifically, it protects patients and the types of information they must share with health care companies to get the care they need.

Many companies don’t know that every company that comes into contact with patient data must also meet these requirements.

This doesn’t just apply to healthcare providers, dentists, ophthalmologists and other specialists – it applies to everyone from law firms, subcontractors, software providers and anyone else involved in processing patient data.

Any cloud fax solution requires additional steps to be fully HIPAA compliant.

First of all, you need to sign a business associate agreement (BAA) with your supplier. This legally obligates both of you to comply with HIPAA standards.

You will also need to:

Identify and mitigate potential risks.
Train your team on securing protected health information (PHI).
Ensure that only authorized employees have access to PHI.
Establish a procedure for responding to emergencies.
Set up instant data breach notifications.
Limit physical access to servers and workstations.
Maintain audit logs that show who gained access and when.
Dispose of equipment safely.
Monitor your activity regularly.

Generally speaking, HIPAA requires administrative, physical, and technical safeguards to maintain compliance and remain so.

Failure to comply with these guidelines can result in costly penalties, including fees ranging from $100 to $100,000 per violation (up to $1.5 million per year) and imprisonment for willful negligence and willful violations.

In addition to compliance, cloud fax provides excellent document management

Instead of relying on locked file cabinets, you get a complete system for controlling access, creating audit trails and managing all your documents.

Most systems include a robust file management system with searchable files and folders, robust version control, tagging options, and cloud storage so your records are accessible from anywhere.

With proper access control, you can determine who sees and modifies documents.

Additionally, automatic archiving and retention settings ensure compliance with industry regulations by safely storing documents for the required period of time.