Cloud based accounting and bookkeeping has been praised as the latest advance in business, allowing real-time access anywhere in the world. However, the main concern is whether it is safe enough for your business to store financial information and access it online in unfamiliar remote locations.
Some of the primary concerns that people have surrounding cloud-based bookkeeping include:
- Loss of data via hacking
- Data alteration or corruption by inexperienced workers
- Loss of data due to cloud failure
- Loss of data when a cloud-based company quits business
Your data is safe
Several parts to the security of a cloud-based bookkeeping software that are actually preferable to having a premise-based system:
- Physical Security: The main benefit of cloud-based systems with regards to data is that it is typically stored in a hardened and secure environment. Your server will be protected, typically in an environment that utilizes the same physical security measures as most banks. Therefore the chance of losing data via hacking or corruption by inexperienced workers is highly unlikely.
- Electronic Security: Cloud-based systems typically employ secure encrypted connections and/or VPN (Virtual Private Network) connections for particularly sensitive information. This allows users to securely access a private network and share data remotely through a public network. Much like firewalls protect your data on your computer, a VPN protects your data online.
- Remote Access: Previously if employees had remote access to the accounting and bookkeeping systems they were more than likely logging in on an unsecured connection and logging into your company’s premise based servers, which were typically unsecure as well. A cloud-based bookkeeping software system solves many of these security issues in business today. Being able to log into and access your accounting or bookkeeping system has become a necessity. The fact that security measures are built into these systems on so many levels as described above is a valuable asset.
Today, cloud-based accounting and bookkeeping software protects the integrity of customers’ data by minimizing the possibility of data loss, security breaches and the external hacking of data. It also maintains the secure segregation of each customer’s data from that of other customers and has a strong disaster recovery plan.
These plans often include additional failsafe data centres and real-time automated backup and data recovery.