Security and Standards Compliance for VoIP Finance

VoIP has taken the business world by storm and it’s not hard to see why. From a startup to multinational corporations, there is no organization that cannot benefit from upgrading to VoIP in some form or the other. Whether you’re in it for cost savings or productivity improvements, VoIP will change the way your employees work.

VoIP technology allows a company to manage as much or as little of their communication infrastructure as they want. Want a totally hands off deployment where the vendor takes care of everything for you? Hosted VoIP might be the best solution. Or maybe you want to design each and every aspect of your voice system to meet your unique requirements. A fully controlled on premise SIP implementation may be right up your alley in that case.

While businesses of various sizes in different industries have embraced VoIP wholeheartedly, the financial services sector hasn’t had it so easy. Banks and investment companies are heavily regulated in most countries. So it is perhaps understandable why these businesses have hesitated to invest in VoIP – especially if it’s delivered over the cloud. In today’s world, a financial services firm can expect to have clients and partners around the globe. It means not only do you have to consider client needs but also the legislation and compliance measure in all the various countries you operate in.

Country/Region Specific Regulation

Most nations have specific legislation that targets the financial services sector. They usually specify certain areas like record keeping, documentation, data security, client confidentiality and so on. But no two laws are exactly alike even within the same country, let alone across the world. So your VoIP solution has to satisfy requirements that can vary substantially between 2 states.

For instance the proposed MiFID II regulatory framework within the EU broadens the scope of calls that financial companies have to record. Since you will now record and store (for 5 years at least) more calls, your VoIP infrastructure needs to scale appropriately. If your vendor cannot accommodate such changes, you might have to switch providers soon. VoIPstudio offers highly reliable call recording solutions that meet MiFID requirements. So you’re good to go when this and similar legislation comes into effect.

This is a single example of the regulatory concerns that companies operating in the financial service sector face on a daily basis. If you have offices in the US, UK and Germany, then your VoIP solution should comply with the multitude of laws in all 3 countries.

Data Security, Confidentiality and Integrity

With the increasing use of digital communication channels, information security is rapidly gaining importance. Banks, investment companies, credit unions, stock brokers etc. are all highly lucrative targets for attackers. Not only do such businesses have sensitive financial data but some hackers groups target them specifically to spread havoc by bringing down financial markets. Hence protecting data – whether it is emails, voice calls or financial documents – is a high priority for financial service firms. You need security right from the moment data is created/generated, when it is stored somewhere and when it is in transit.

Many VoIP vendors are unable to provide enterprise grade security which is another reason for such businesses to hesitate with VoIP. The VoIPstudio platform uses the strongest encryption protocols for physical storage devices, preventing criminals from profiting even if they manage to enter your system and steal data. VoIPstudio also implements TLS encrypted SIP signalling along with encrypting the actual voice streams as well. Combined with ISO certified data centers in multiple locations, it offers the highest levels of data security and call quality that financial companies need.

Backup, Recovery and Disaster Management

All too often, companies forget about disaster recovery and data backup when they think about information security. But protecting data from threats involve more than stopping the bad guys from getting in. You still need to be able to access data and technology even when a natural or manmade emergency arises. VoIPstudio allows you to route phone calls to any phone number whether it is a landline or mobile phone. So should your office face any disaster, simply move your staff to another location and they can still answer.make calls as usual. Your customers need not know that anything is wrong behind the scenes!

Businesses in the financial industry are currently under intense media scrutiny. It has increased after the recent economic downturn. You need a VoIP solution that complies with applicable legislation, is flexible enough to accommodate changes to regulatory frameworks in the future and provides advanced capabilities that give a competitive edge to your organization. Unfortunately the vast majority of hosted VoIP services don’t meet such stringent requirements. But the ones that do – like VoIPstudio – are generally the best in the business. If you have been thinking of switching to hosted VoIP, don’t hesitate to give us a call and start your free trial today.