Encrypted email is a primary tool being used by the industry to combat cybercrime, says Anthony Rafferty, CEO Origo.
Recognition amongst financial services businesses of the need to safeguard emails is increasing in the face of financial cybercrime and they are taking action.
Industry providers such as Aegon and Royal London are using military-grade encryption email services to protect their email exchanges with financial advice firms, and other providers are also realising email protection is now essential.
Cyber criminals hack vulnerable email systems and employ sniffer programs which identify valuable emails and take copies of them, which the criminals can then exploit. For example, in just one email in which a client sends their personal and asset details to their financial adviser, there would be enough detail to help criminals commit fraud.
Putting in place a secure, military-grade encrypted email system, one which protects emails in transit, and ensures that only the intended recipient can access the email, as well as providing an audit trail for compliance purposes, now needs to be thought of as base-level security for product providers and financial advice firms, and without a doubt where confidential and transactional data is being sent.
It is also another way for providers and firms to demonstrate value to their respective customers in the precautions they are taking to safeguard their data.
Origo’s Unipass Mailock system has now surpassed one million emails through the system. Looking at industry benefits, not only has this protected over a million communications between providers, advisers and their clients, but we calculate that this equates to £1.9m saved in print, packaging and postage costs, as well as climate related savings of 459 tonnes of CO2 and 154,000 tonnes of water.
The risk to businesses is not just potentially having to compensate clients for losses, and meeting fines imposed by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), but the effect on client trust and the reputation of the business.
As we move to a more digital advice experience, we expect to see companies of all sizes look to protect this potential point of vulnerability and employ encrypted email as a matter of course.
