Businesses have always had a responsibility to protect the data they hold about their customers and employees, but earlier this year the new GDPR regulations came into effect, replacing legislation from 1995. Now, all businesses that hold personal data must comply with the regulation, managing or processing personal data in a secure and responsible way, with processes and procedures in place to protect this data.

Copying, scanning or printing are forms of processing data and as such fall within the regulation, so we've been working with our customers to give advice and support, keeping them protected and secure at all times. Keeping our customers data safe, Sharp offers a multi-layered approach to security, focusing on controlled user access, network and document security. Controlling access to the MFP device is important in order to overcome the threat of unwanted use of the equipment. Most MFPs are connected to the network and so can be hacked just like a PC. We can provide a wealth of built-in access control options such as user authentication through an integration with LDAP, active directory and ID card reader support. Document security is also important, and as such Sharp offer serverless print release, scanning as an encrypted PDF, encrypted email and encrypting data whilst on their devices.

Sharp were the first MFP manufacturer to offer a Data Security Kit back in 2001, and this security kit offered data encryption and the secure erase of data, common criteria certified. Data encryption and secure erase is now included as a standard feature within many models of the current range of MFPs. It simply needs enabling by us. Sharp has also recently become the first MFP manufacturer to offer an Office based device that has been tested and certified against the government-designed stringent Hard Copy Device Protection Profile standard. This offers the ultimate level of security within the device, with many features disabled whilst enforcing and enabling many of the devices security capabilities.

Strengthening the security of the MFP as it sits on the network, using the latest networking technologies, will help reduce the risk of a loss of data and a security breach. Use encryption to protect data that is on the device and enable secure data erase functions. Or you could add the full Data Security Kit for any capable device. Having visibility of who accessed your systems and when is important. Accountability and traceability are important within GDPR and we can help in this area through the inbuilt audit trail features on Sharp MFPs or by integrating with a central print management solution that will offer additional management and control of what is being printing, by who on which device.

Security also applies to paperwork, which is inherently insecure; it is difficult to trace and easy to remove or misplace. We can also support you with this by integrating your copier with a number of market leading document capture solutions, and additionally provide electronic document management software that will help streamline the conversion of paper based documents. This will help you to secure, share and manage electronic documentation more effectively. If you'd like to find out more about security, GDPR and how our MFPs can work for your organisation, please contact us today.

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