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The importance of effective document archiving cannot be overlooked at any business. You need to ensure that your files are stored in an organized manner so that you have easy access to them, while security is also important to ensure that confidential documents are protected. With that being said, continue reading to discover some mistakes you need to avoid to ensure document storage disaster does not occur.

• Failing to keep up to date with the latest legislation – There are new regulations all of the time regarding data storage and data breaches. It is important to keep up to date with this; otherwise you could find that you are on the wrong side of the law without even realizing it. If you do not keep up to date with recent regulations, you may fail to achieve compliance, and this can result in huge fines.
• Keeping records on-site – When it comes to document security, storing all of your vital records on-site can be a risky approach. The vast majority of businesses are not built with the adequate level of security in place to protect their sensitive documents. Moreover, if someone is going to target your business, the first place they are going to start is your business location. If you keep your records in an off-site facility, you will benefit from a greater level of protection, as these facilities are designed to be secure.
• Not having a document retention schedule – When it comes to archiving documents, dealing with excess records is just as important as storing your documents effectively. You can end up with an abundance of information that should have been destroyed if you do not have a document retention schedule in place. Not only will these documents take up unnecessary storage space, but you can also have other issues. These files could prove to be a large liability. What if someone gets their hands on them? You could end up with a competitor or a hacker having your confidential company information, which could have severe consequences for your business. All of this could have been avoided if your documents were destroyed to begin with.
• Taking a casual approach to security measures – This is undoubtedly one of the biggest mistakes that company owners make. A lot of business owners just view document archiving as a means of being organized. However, security is imperative. You need to have an effective security plan in place. One of the biggest mistakes is granting employees access to documents that do not need it. Or, using generic or vendor supplied passwords for those who do need access. You need to use the likes of federated authentication and other security measures, as well as restricting physical access to files on-site too.
• Failing to test back-ups – Last but not least, you need to ensure you test your back-ups. You do not want to experience the nightmare scenario where you go to attempt to recover your data after experiencing a loss, only to find that the tapes are blank and/or corrupted. This can happen if you do not test your back-ups on a regular basis to ensure that everything is working properly.