Is online fax secure? That is one of the most frequently asked questions among people who have yet to find a secure fax service. If you’re still unsure about online faxing, this guide will answer everything you need to know about using an online fax service such as etherFAX.net.
What Is Secure Fax?
A secure fax is a digital document that is encrypted for security over fax servers. A secure fax cannot be intercepted, stolen or accessed by unauthorized third parties. On a secure fax, the numbers of both the sender and the recipient are hidden from view to protect both identities. Secure faxes are protected with strong encryption and impossible to read until they arrive in the hands of recipients.
Many of today’s businesses are employing cloud fax service companies to safely fax sensitive documents with utmost confidentiality.
How to Send a Secure Fax
When you need to send documents securely, your best option is to use a secure cloud fax service. Online secure fax services protect documents from interception while they are being transmitted and while they are stored in the cloud. Compared to traditional faxing methods, digital faxing offers several key benefits:
1. Encrypted Systems
Digital faxing uses encrypted systems that are far safer than Ethernet, WiFi, or phone lines. This makes digital faxing a more secure medium for communication than traditional fax or email, both of which can be easily hacked or intercepted.
Traditional faxing uses phone lines, making documents vulnerable if the line is bugged by an information thief. For example, if someone infiltrates your company with the intent to steal information, they could bug your phone lines and intercept incoming and outgoing faxes.
Email correspondence is also less secure than digital faxing. Emails travel through Ethernet cables similar to phone lines, and they are vulnerable to hackers and data breaches. Digital faxing protects each exchange with layers of security that cannot be penetrated by phone bugs or email phishing tactics.
2. Flexibility
Digital faxes can be received on an email server, a fax machine, secure network folders, or directly into business applications. This flexibility allows you to choose the most suitable option for the sensitivity of the documents. For example, documents with sensitive information such as signatures, social security numbers, or credit card information should be received on faxing devices.
If the documents do not contain sensitive data, you can choose to receive them as emails or faxes. For non-sensitive documents like promotions or party invites, email correspondence might be more convenient.
3. Legally Binding Documents
Email is not an acceptable medium for legally binding documents due to security risks. There is no way to verify the authenticity of a signature sent via email.
Fax, both traditional and digital, is accepted for legally binding documents because the signature can be verified. A paper document signed in ink and returned via fax shows the authenticity through the handwriting. Digital fax signatures are verifiable because the document can only be processed on the intended recipient’s device. Faxed documents are generally accepted as legally binding, except for those submitted to government agencies.
4. Hack-Proof Documents
Cyber thieves can hack email servers and leak private data, leading to business collapses, career destruction, and reputation damage. Despite efforts to block intrusions, hacking remains a problem for email users.
Faxes are immune to hacking because cybercriminals cannot hack into a fax to steal data. Even if an unauthorized party intercepts a fax, they cannot read the data because it requires conversion that only the sender or receiver can authorize.
5. No Spam
Unlike email, which is plagued by spam, faxes do not suffer from this issue. It is illegal to send junk faxes because it uses up the recipient’s toner and paper. Therefore, fax correspondence, whether digital or traditional, is free from spam.
6. No Blocking
Emails can be blocked by spam filters, causing important messages to end up in the recipient’s spam folder. This can result in missed opportunities. Faxes do not have blocking functions, so they are generally received and processed as intended.
7. Instant Confirmation
One of the advantages of fax correspondence is the instant confirmation of receipt. When you send a fax, you are notified immediately when the fax is received on the other end, giving you peace of mind.
Is Faxing Documents Secure?
To keep your faxed documents secure, follow these practices:
- Ensure your fax service provider uses strong encryption for documents in transit and at rest.
- Crop confidential information before forwarding a fax to a third party.
- Contact the recipient to verify they are available to receive the fax, especially if it involves a deadline or requires prompt action.
- Avoid sharing highly confidential faxes with organizations that have weak confidentiality practices.
- Implement a retention policy to ensure faxed communications are not retained beyond their expiration dates.
- Understand the privacy protections and retention policies of your fax service provider.
Cloud-based fax services are safe and efficient when used responsibly.
Is Using Email Safer Than Sending Faxes?
Email has been around since the 1980s and remains popular for many reasons. Here are some aspects of email security:
1. Password Protection
Email servers are protected by login and password prompts. If the wrong information is entered, access is denied. This makes email a generally secure medium for basic correspondence.
2. Firewalls
Modern email services have firewalls that filter out suspicious emails and block dangerous attachments. However, businesses and high-security organizations still prefer more secure communication methods for sensitive data.
3. Privacy
Email is private between the sender and the recipient. However, a fax could be seen by anyone with access to the machine at the receiving end, potentially compromising privacy.
Why You Should Use Fax Instead of Email
Faxing is generally more secure for sensitive or highly classified documents. Here are some reasons why:
1. Email Attachments
Email attachments can carry viruses and malware that can infect computers and spread across networks. Faxed documents do not have this risk.
2. Email Hacking
Emails can be hacked, allowing unauthorized parties to access confidential information. Secure digital faxing encrypts data, making it unreadable to unauthorized parties.
3. Phishing
Emails can be used for phishing, tricking recipients into providing personal information. Phishing is not possible with secure digital faxing.
Secure Fax Service From Softlinx
Secure fax is becoming the preferred method for B2B communication. If you frequently fax documents to and from your customers and contacts, consider using a cloud fax service. Contact Softlinx for a demo or get a quote.
