The outsourcing marketplace, or the industry of business process outsourcing as a whole, is known for generating cost-effective and top-quality services for its clients.
From its early stages in manufacturing and call centres, it has widened its offerings to customer service, human resources, bookkeeping, and even professional services. This enabled the emergence of high-value outsourcing, including research and development and other novelty strategies getting offshored. Affordable premium technology also made it possible for small and medium companies to try it.
However, despite it being in demand, many businesses worry about the risks of outsourcing their functions which include data and cybersecurity concerns and how a BPO service provider can manage it.
In this blog post, we will tackle how you can keep your data safe and secure with outsourcing!
Establish a Good Security Policy
First things first. Ensure that your business’ security policy is in order before outsourcing. A good security policy will be rational and sound. Some of the essential facets of your policy should include a data classification that can distinguish between common and sensitive data and should also cater to clear guidelines and standards.
Implement Clear Expectations With An Offshored Data Services Provider
To attain success in any business relationship, it is crucial to have clear expectations. Set the stage for strong communication and transparency from the outset by discussing expectations such as project scope, data ownership, timelines and roles. In addition, also note to enquire about what measures your data management outsourcing partner has prepared to maintain security and privacy from cyberattacks.
Require Sound Privacy and Intellectual Protection Laws or Compliance
Check if your third-party provider has sound privacy and intellectual protection laws or compliance, such as SOCII or SOC2, designed to ensure data remains secure and private while in the hands of an outsourcing company. Developed by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), this certification is generally considered a non-negotiable core requirement when choosing a service provider. Make these clear with them to avoid later misunderstandings.
Utilise Measures and Devices to Protect Your Data
Start incorporating the use of database monitoring gateways and application layer firewalls before outsourcing. These devices can help you enforce usage policies and prevent vulnerability exploitation and privilege abuse. Select a third party that employs both these functionalities for the total protection of your data.
Combat Leak-Proof Traffic
Make sure that your outsourcing partner monitors emails for potential information leaks and checks outbound internet traffic. These would ensure to avoid leak-proof traffic.
Conduct Application and Network Security Audits Regularly
Doing regular checkups will ensure secure outsourcing. Audits can help identify potential vulnerabilities and issues with the databases, applications and devices on the network.
Ensure Prevention Tools and Technologies Are Integrated
Make sure that your outsourcing partner has tools and technologies to protect sensitive data from being copied and emailed to removable types of media. Ask if they have the means to control your data flow and if their own policies regarding this are being followed by their staff.
Trust Your Data Management Outsourcing to a Reputable Service Provider
This is one of the most critical steps to consider while outsourcing. As such, choose an outsourcing provider that offers data management services like IT BPO, which goes by a strict security policy and must employ security rules that protect your data from being copied to portable devices.
Conclusion
Most BPO companies do follow the data and compliance standards set by institutions like AICPA, ISO, HIPAA, and so on. Even when working remotely, they make sure that these processes and standards are practised. However, it is still equally imperative for businesses to have a check and balance with an outsourcing provider. This is to really make your outsourced data safe and secure and this collaborative project a successful one.
Don’t let risks in security and privacy stop you from experiencing the benefits that offshoring provides. Outsource from an excellent outsourcing marketplace like The Lead Enquiry. We’ll connect you with BPO service providers that have complete security and confidentiality of the client’s data. This is through comprehensive cybersecurity and the latest tools and technologies at hand! Contact us today.
