In 2018 more than ever, the financial sector is integral to the success of the UK economy. Virtually every adult in the UK is a consumer of financial services, and the industry’s a significant employer too. Given its importance, it’s unsurprisingly one of the tightest regulated sectors of the economy. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) provides regulatory oversight, but it’s often international agreements that have more far-reaching effects on the sector. Not least among these is the Europe-wide General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which came into force in May. CAS specialist document storage for the finance sector can help in many ways.
For much of the last year, many FCA-regulated companies have been improving their data protection systems. If your company is looking for specialist document storage and secure document management solutions to help meet these new standards, look no further than CAS. We already have many financial sector clients. As well as document storage and archive storage of business and customer records, we also offer live file storage for documents which are frequently accessed. We can digitise documents as necessary with our scanning-on-demand service. And for a complete scanning and electronic document management solution, we offer our proprietary CAS-Cloud service.
At every stage of our processes, we provide the highest levels of security. We have a dedicated fleet of GPS-tracked vehicles for safe transport to and from our secure records storage facilities. These facilities have securely gated perimeter fences, monitored by 24/7 by Mobotix M12 CCTV cameras with off-site back-ups. Our gate staff require identification for anyone entering the facility and only admit authorised personnel.
Within the storage facilities, we have an equally high attention to detail. Staff require authorisation from advanced Suprema BioEntry fingerprint IP access terminals to enter the warehouses. We use the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) to check the criminal records of all CAS document-handling and security staff. And environmental controls, advanced optical fire beam protection system and air-quality monitoring ensure the physical condition of storage facilities.
CAS deploys Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) at our storage facilities for effective financial records storage. RFID is one of the most advanced systems to track clients’ documents. It provides new levels of accuracy and efficiency far beyond standard barcode management. RFID asset tracking enables comprehensive audits to be performed in close to real-time. These confirm and validate the location of every RFID carton with 99.999% accuracy. This supports strict compliance regulations, including Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) and current UK and EU data protection requirements.
To meet GDPR requirements, all FCA-regulated companies will now have in place new systems to deal with enhanced personal rights over data. These include deleting personal data (the right to erasure), and providing data electronically on request (the right to access). In a networked world, it’s also crucial to keep records of who you share personal data with too, not least in case you need to rectify inaccurate personal data.
One vital element is having the right procedures in place to detect, report and investigate a personal data breach. Failure to report a violation to the data protection authority and (in some cases) to individuals could result in a fine, as well as a fine for the breach itself. It’s notable that the £500,000 penalty imposed by Information Commissioners Office (ICO) against Facebook last week came under old data protection rules. Future fines may be much larger, so it’s vital to keep testing systems to ensure that they are robust.
CAS has taken the opportunities which GDPR offers to maintain our excellent data protection standards. For all our customers, we’ll keep data safe and secure if you use our document storage or scan-on-demand services. And data protection is a key element in our office removal, document shredding and data disposal services.
If you have any questions about specialist document storage for the finance sector or any of our other services, contact one of the team today!
CAS provides comprehensive and secure document storage and management, scan on demand, and facilities management services. For more than 20 years CAS have worked with NHS Trusts, Financial Services providers, and corporate and private clients. Our head office is just four miles from the City of London. Supported by our advanced storage centres across the UK. CAS has an impressive array of International certifications (ISOs), which prove our compliance with the strictest national, European and international laws. They also demonstrate our commitment to provide innovative systems for security, confidentiality and quality control in keeping your files safe and well managed. CAS specialist document storage for the finance sector can help you be GDPR-compliant.