How Secure Is Online Faxing?

Perhaps, one of the most asked questions about Internet or

online fax is this: how secure is online faxing? Is using

your computer and your Internet connection a safe way to

send and receive your sensitive faxes?



Actually, if you fully investigate the matter, online faxing

is much more secure than regular faxing from the old traditional

fax machine in the office. There are many reasons why this is so,

but the main one has to do with encryption. You can encrypt your

faxes so that only you and the receiver can view them. No one else

will see your sensitive faxes.



Many Internet Fax Providers use SSL and PGP encryption.

Most, if not all email service providers are compliant

with such privacy regulations as Gramm-Leach-Bliley & HIPAA

in the United States and PIPEDA (Personal Information Protection

and Electronic Documents Act) in Canada.



Compared to the old traditional fax machine in the office

where many prying eyes can view your faxes, online faxing

is much more secure. Furthermore, you can securely store your

faxes in your online account, although it is probably a good

business practice to delete any sensitive faxes once you have

read them if you want to keep them totally secret.



Keep in mind, most computer systems (no matter how secure)

may be cracked by any determined individuals who wish to do

us harm. So like any sensitive files you have on your computer,

it is probably wise to store your faxes securely by using an

encryption program or by using other means to make them u

navailable to the surfing public.



If security is of a great concern to you, always check out

any Internet Fax Service Provider before you sign up to discover

what encryption measures they take to protect your privacy.

Make sure any fax service you obtain does meet any privacy

issues that you may have. Since your chosen fax service will

act as an intermediary on your behalf to handle all your faxing,

do you due diligence and thoroughly check out any company

before signing on the dotted line. Make sure there hasn't

been any major privacy/security issues with past customers

or users.



Again, since we are talking about using your computer and

sending your faxes in emails as attachments, you must make

sure both aspects or components are secure. Fortunately,

computers are becoming much more secure and there are numerous

programs you can use to encrypt your data. Likewise, email also

has become more secure as web users have become cautious about

using email for sending sensitive information and have taken

steps to address this problem.



With a good high quality online fax service, the security

of your faxes should not be a major concern. Just take some

simple steps to ensure your faxes are quickly deleted and/or

stored in encrypted form, both on your computer and in your

online fax account. Always remember, an ounce of prevention

is worth a pound of cure, just make sure your faxes are handled

securely from the get-go and you shouldn't have any problems.













...


For more information on Internet Fax Services use this

handy online Comparison Guide to learn more about: online faxing

Or if you want more detailed information on Internet Faxing

try here: internet fax services.

Titus Hoskins Copyright © 2009. This article may be freely

distributed if this resource box stays attached.