Tag Archive for: document signing

HR Consultants are benefiting from using Safe4

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HR Consultants no longer have to worry about the safety and security of communications with their clients

Safe4 Channel Development Director

Paul Stallard

 

HR Consultants are benefiting from using Safe4. Paul Stallard, Channel Development Director of Safe4, has stressed that by its very nature the information that is passed between HR consultants and their clients, particularly employee information, is extremely confidential. Of course, it is covered explicitly by the UK Data Protection Act of 2018, which has embraced the European General Data Protection Regulation. However, the loss or improper use of personally-identifiable information can lead to massive penalties and serious reputational damage.

 

Safe4 provides a highly secure online vault for HR Consultants to share and store confidential information. With over 48,000 users Safe4 is a well-established platform that provides a range of benefits:-

  • Complete confidentiality – Safe4 has been designed to be secure from first principles
  • A secure vault is set up for each client or employee of the principal client. There is no possibility of any unauthorised access to information – only specifically-invited and authorised parties can access the vault
  • All data is stored in the UK
  • A comprehensive audit trail captures records of all user activity
  • No information is actually sent by email. Whilst so-called “secure” email services might be able to transfer information safely between parties, they do not manage any documents or data throughout the life of a consultant / client relationship, or indeed of a client / employee relationship – Safe4 does
  • The Safe4 asset register allows information to be held as structured data and displayed in columns and rows similar to a spreadsheet or simple database. This is a highly secure and efficient way to hold specific details about an individual, allowing such confidential data as National Insurance numbers, bank details, and general personal information to be entered directly into fields online, as opposed to having to include them within a document
  • Automatic notification of any new upload, whether of a document or a data record
  • Signing documents online – this can cover service agreements between consultant and client, as well as contracts of employment for the clients’ staff. The Safe4 document signing facility is accepted by both HMRC and Companies House in the UK
  • The Safe4 compliance framework can be used as a means of sharing policy and procedure documents with staff, and can also provide confirmation that these documents have been read and understood

In short, the implementation of this approach can allow HR Consultants to furnish their clients with confidential information in a completely secure way, and can also be extended to allow the Consultant’s client companies to manage the information they handle on behalf of their own staff.

For more information on how HR Consultants are benefiting from using Safe4, please contact us. We will be delighted to share with you some of the success stories achieved so far.

Document signing in Safe4 is now available – version 6.0 is released

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The need for documents to be signed electronically in accordance with the requirements of HMRC and Companies House in the UK has been highlighted by a number of Safe4 customers. Consequently Safe4 have now added a document signing facility to their highly secure information delivery and storage service, without the need for any external technologies.

How the signing function works

There are a couple of prerequisites for this facility: the document must be held in Safe4 in PDF format, and the required signatories must be users of Safe4 and have access to the folder in which the document is located.

Single or multiple documents can be issued for signature, and if required multiple users can be requested to sign. In the case of multiple documents being selected, there is an option to create a “pack”, so that all of the documents can be signed in a single action. Requested signatories will receive an email with a link to the document/s requiring signature. When this is clicked they will be presented with an option to sign or decline the document, after having entered their Safe4 password and PIN. When all documents have been signed and all users have actioned the signature request, a new version of the PDF file will be created with an added page – this will show a complete list of all of the signatures, together with a verification code, made up of a hash of the user details, the document ID, and the date and time of signature. This functions in a similar way to blockchain, being an immutable record of the signing event.

Other enhancements

In addition to the document signing function, a setting has been added to the provider administration screen, allowing Safe4 Common Folders to be disabled. If selected, this will prevent users uploading files into the Common Folders area of a Safe4 vault in error.

Significant changes have also been made to the Safe4 server architecture, enhancing security and performance, to ensure that the class-leading safety and availability provided by Safe4 is maintained in line with industry best practice.

If you would like any further information on how these enhancements can add value to your business, please contact us at Safe4. We will be delighted to hear from you.