Is Your Data Vulnerable?

14 Jul 2014

Whether mundane or extraordinary, behind everything we experience in life, there are structures in place to ensure things run smoothly. Your pride and joy may be your new car, with incredible acceleration and all-round performance, looking good, with a top of the range sound system. But you still need to check the oil and tyre pressure. Your gorgeous brand new kitchen still needs to be kept clean, and sharp and dangerous implements need to be stored somewhere safe.

With your cloud CRM solution you can benefit from all the usual advantages of cloud-based software – access from anywhere at any time, on all manner of devices. But you also need to consider the security aspect of the system, to ensure your system, your data, and ultimately your business, is kept as safe as it can be. In this two-part series we will be looking at some security aspects which may help keep you online CRM experience safe and enjoyable and limit vulnerability.

Use a Safe Password. Ensure that you use strong passwords – no real names or words. Combinations of upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols. You can even use  password manager software meaning you can create very secure passwords without needing to remember them

Log Out Properly. When you are finished with using your CRM instead of just closing the window, get into the habit of logging out.

Use Roles & Permissions. Define who can access which sets of data. This can be done at global, team and individual level.  You can also restrict access to individual fields. For example you may store financial details on company records which your accounts team needs, but that your sales people don’t need to see and certainly should not be able to edit.

Enable IP verification. You can set up an additional layer of security whereby CRM access is restricted or blocked according to IP address. Ensure your CRM system is only accessed from recognised sources.

Restrict Data Export. Prevent non-authorised personnel from downloading customer data by restricting export capabilities to system administrators.

Just like the annual MOT, or the visit to the opticians, these safety measures are designed to ensure that you pick up on any issues sooner rather than later, get them looked after, and allow you to continue on your journey with confidence.