A Guide to Hosted Email Archiving Encryption and Security
Communication is important in the business world. One of the best ways that we can communicate with one another is through emails. Some emails are simply ones that can be quickly read and tossed aside. However, there are many other emails that we may want to save for future reference. Having access to these emails at a later date becomes important because of the data that is listed inside of them.
One of the downsides of saving emails is that they can quickly take up space in our inbox. This could lead to valuable information being misplaced. One solution is to save important emails in separate folders within the email software. This is beneficial when it comes to cataloging purposes, but can also begin to eat into the overall memory space that is available for saved emails.
The best solution to this problem is hosted email archiving security. This is an effective approach that will allow you to have access to older emails, but that won’t take up space within your email itself. Effectively using this system does require a bit of effort, however. For example, it is crucial that you spend some time focusing on the encryption and security of your emails. This guide to hosted email archiving security and encryption will allow you to do just that.
Why is Hosted Email Security Important?
Typically the information that is found within an archived email is fairly sensitive. It is not the intent that others have access to these emails other than those who directly received the email in question. However, in today’s world, it is now becoming easier than ever for archived emails to find their way into the hands of someone who should not receive the information. In fact, many companies are finding that hackers are looking for ways to gain access to this valuable information on a daily basis.
Hosted email archive security and encryption is a system that is put in place with the intent of protecting the data of a company. Along with this, it is also something that allows businesses to remain in compliance in regard to standards that have been put in place by the industry. These regulations could revolve around information regarding customers or even information about the industry or companies within the industry.
Securing and archiving email files are also important because of the fear of disasters. If a business loses their computer systems, having a way to retrieve important files is critical in regard to the continuity of the company. There is likely to be a great deal of valuable information sitting in inboxes throughout the company. Retrieving those emails is important when a disaster occurs because it can help to keep the company functioning properly.
Pitfalls of Lack of Archiving Security
Many companies are now finding themselves in a great deal of trouble based upon the compromise of their email security. This compromise has led to a decrease in the productivity of the company and their employees. One of the main reasons that this has caused productivity issues is because of lost email files that cannot be retrieved.
The actual type of file that is stored is one of the biggest causes of these issues. When certain files that store archived emails become too large, it is much easier for them to become corrupted. This can make it difficult to manage these files, which can also lead to legal compliance issues for the company.
Managing files is an important part of security because of the dangers that are present when a company loses control over their emails. Typically, emails will contain information about a company and their plans for the future. These plans have a higher chance of being sabotaged or mimicked if competitors or others outside of the company are able to access this information.
Another common issue occurs when lost emails lead to the breaking of the law or requirement that is currently in place within the industry. This could lead to legal action against the company as well as fines. Along with not being able to supply required emails to authorities, businesses may also find themselves in hot water when they are not able to provide the emails in a timely manner. This is another reason that a strong hosted email security and encryption policy should be in place.
How to Make Sure Your Emails Are Archived Properly
The first thing that you should do as a business leader who is looking to make sure that emails are being protected properly is to develop an email retention policy. Without a policy in place, the management of emails is left up to each individual employee that receives an email.
This is dangerous because you may find that not everyone is following the same pattern when it comes to email retention. With a policy that clearly shows employees what is expected when it comes to archived emails, you will be able to protect your company from litigation that may cost a great deal of money.
One of the most common ways to archive emails is through PST files. These are files that your email provider uses to store all of your emails, contacts and data. One of the downfalls of this type of system is that larger files can take longer to load. There is also a size limit that must be considered along with PST files.
To counteract this, many choose to create alternate PST files. This is something that can help to save room and make the files function faster than before. It is also possible to place passwords on these files that can help protect them even further.
Final Thoughts
The most important thing to remember when it comes to email archives is that you should not consider it as an email backup. Archiving is quite a bit different from storage. Instead, this is an approach that is systematic with one goal in mind—to preserve the content that is contained within email messages. This data is then stored in a secure environment that offers rapid searching capabilities at a later date.
Naturally, there are many third-party companies that will help you with the process of encrypting and securing your archived emails. These companies will be able to offer your company alternatives to email archiving that will help customize the approach to fit your needs. Not only can this help to make your emails more secure, but it can help to save time for your IT department as well.
Choosing the right company for this important task can take time and effort on your part, but the outcome is well worth the process that you will go through. To learn more about what we can offer, make sure that you contact us today.
