How Does Client Information Remain Secure in a Virtual Firm?

As a virtual accounting firm, we take great pride in keeping our client’s information confidential and secure. As a virtual accounting firm, our team has the ability to work completely virtually – our employees are able to work wherever and whenever as long as our client’s needs are met. One of the necessary focus items for all virtual firms, accounting in particular, is the ability to keep client information secure.

As a CPA firm, we interact with many sensitive documents that need to be handled with care. Creating safe practices regarding how this information is handled, processed, and the cyber security required to keep information safe is quite simple. Here are a few of the ways we at ModVentures keep your information safe – and encourage you to take similar safety precautions:

Set Up a Secure Cloud or Dropbox for All Client Documents

When we became a virtual firm, one of the first steps we took was adding all client documents to a virtual cloud. This means that most documents we come in contact with are scanned and uploaded to a secure, online folder. 

Having a cloud or dropbox creates a central and safe place for sensitive documents to be stored so that employees may access accounting information and ensure client information remains secure in our virtual firm. We give our clients access to their a personal portal so they can upload their documents directly their. This method reduces the risks of breach in cyber security during email correspondence.

Only Connect to Trusted or Reputable Wi-Fi

When a firm operates virtually, you have employees (and yourself) working remotely from home, coffee shops, and coworking offices. This is perfectly fine for maintaining cyber security when done correctly. Employees working remotely will always connect to reputable Wi-Fi sources and not just any open Wi-Fi’s in the area. Priority is to connect to their own, personal hotspot, but it’s understandable that it’s not always possible. 

We avoid random public connections to prevent the chance to open our client information to hackers waiting to steal your information after accessing their network. And, even when we do connect to public, trusted internet sources, we ensure that our sharing settings are turned off so our work cannot be accessed by anyone else.

Use https Rather Than Just http

When browsing the internet, make sure that you use https rather than just http. Check the address bar where you put a URL to make sure the extra “s” is there. Adding the “s” enables more security by encrypting anything you send or receive from the website you’re visiting. This is a simple security step you can take, especially when on a public wifi network, to add another layer of protection and is another way we keep or client’s information secure. 

Utilize a Firewall

Any computer that is considered used for work purposes likely has a built-in firewall. Use it, we do! It’s there for a reason and is the first line of defense against hackers. If the built in firewall doesn’t seem strong enough, there are many firewalls to invest in for additional cyber security. Though we are not the experts in cyber security, we have gone to great lengths to ensure that our client data is always safe and secure whether it’s accessed in Tucson, Arizona or Juneau, Alaska.

Accounting is serious business, and we definitely treat it as so. If you have questions or concerns about investing in a virtual accounting firm, don’t hesitate to contact us.