Jul 2022
14
How the cloud can improve your business’ security
When you process payroll, sensitive employee data can be at risk of becoming lost or damaged. All it takes is one accidental download or a mistyped email address to expose this data to the wrong person.
That’s why cloud payroll solutions are at the forefront of payroll security nowadays. Utilising the cloud in your payroll process means that you can ensure your payroll data is safe. Depending on what payroll software provider you’re using, features can vary across the board. Below, we’ve put together our top three features that we believe cloud payroll solutions should offer, to ensure the complete security of your employees’ payroll data.
1. Automatic backups
Manually backing up your payroll data to an external hard drive or third-party file hosting service can be time-consuming, tedious, and not as secure as you might think. You should be able to backup your payroll data automatically to the cloud, as you use the software. This ensures that, should your computer crash or be stolen, you won’t lose any important data.
Another factor to consider is are these backups being stored on your desktop, or are they being stored on a secure online platform? It is recommended that you store a chronological history of your backups in a secure online location, which keeps your employees’ data safe from harm’s way. This prevents unnecessary panic down the road, should disaster strike, as you know that you can retrieve and download a previous version of your payroll information, at any time.
2. Employer and employee online portals
Have you ever sent a payslip to the wrong employee, or mismanaged annual leave requests? These everyday problems can now be easily resolved with employer and employee portals. Not only are they a great way to increase the security of your payroll data, they also improve your GDPR compliance, as well as your employees’ job satisfaction.
BrightPay’s employer dashboard for example, allows you to view employees’ payslips, upload important HR documents, manage annual leave requests and view any payments that are due to Revenue, all from one secure location. For further information on what BrightPay’s employer dashboard can offer you, please watch this short one-minute video.
BrightPay’s employee app also provides many security benefits, such as allowing employees to update their personal details from anywhere, at any time. Employees can also easily access an archive of all their payslips from the app, readily available to view, print and download. This gives the employee more control over their personal information from a secure online location, which is in line with GDPR best practices.
3. Two-factor authentication
Did you know that Ireland had the highest increase in cyberattacks in Europe last year? That’s why it’s more important than ever before to have extra security measures, such as two-factor authentication, when accessing sensitive data. Two-factor authentication is usually done through phone, email or an authenticator app and involves a code being sent to the user which they will need to input to gain access to the application. This provides an added layer of security, verifying that only those who are authorised to do so, are accessing, and viewing payroll data.
Where can I learn more about the benefits of cloud payroll tools?
BrightPay’s payroll cloud-extension, BrightPay Connect, offers all of the these features mentioned above, along with many other benefits that can enhance your business, whether you have one or 10,000 employees. BrightPay is a leading Irish payroll software for employers and we work hard to provide the most up-to-date and innovative solutions in payroll software, regularly hosting webinars and creating guides on the latest payroll features. Sign upto our newsletter by clicking the link below to stay in the loop, or sign up for a free 15-minute demo to look at our cloud extension in more detail.
