Data Security

Some years ago when copiers began digitizing data, the copier hard drive became a part of the technology. As today’s office copiers handle ever-larger amounts of data, the way that this hard drive is managed only grows in importance.

Should a copier be employed in a Philadelphia law office or medical clinic, the need to maintain confidentiality of records and documents is self-evident. For example, HIPAA laws provide for substantial fines if there is a known failure to maintain the privacy of a patient’s information.

Copier manufacturers have been responsive to this challenge by, for example, creating “data security kits.” Such add-on systems prevent the accumulation of sensitive data on those copier hard drives.

One problem that has occurred is this — a kit is selected by the business purchasing or leasing the copier, but it is never switched on when the technician first sets up the unit.

Copiers that lack such kits still often include a mechanism for automatically wiping the hard drive clean, usually on a monthly basis. Again, the key is to properly make use of this capability.

Finally, payroll information and tax records are other types of data that could inadvertently end up stored in the copier for long periods of time. The steps to address such potential security breaches are simple enough to utilize; one just needs to be aware of what needs to be done.