Since GDPR we have used various third party systems to send documents to clients. These have not really worked either due to poor software, me and my team not liking it or the clients not liking it.
Me and my clients would really like to go back to just sending documents via email. Can we do this under GDPR?
Can someone let me know in simple terms please?
Replies (11)
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I believe so if they accept the risks of sending original documents.
Can you not send PDF's that are password protected?
Adobe Acrobat if you're OK with paying the premium for it.
Personally I use free PDF tools called PDFill to add a password to a single PDF.
If it's multiple files I use 7zip to create a passworded zip file.
Either of the above solutions.
If you are saving from an Office file then you should be able to add a password through :
Save As
- Save as type: PDF
- select Tools - General options
Given you have clearly investing lots of time and money in these third party systems you go back to basics, and invest an hour reading the underlying GDP document?
You will then find the answer.......is to just email the things and ensure your T&C's cover you, and password protect if there is extra risk. Personally I find it annoying to protect, but would be useful if (say) emailing a director's tax return to a work email and not their private email. That is to say instances where you would previously have written "private and confidential, addressee to open only" on an envelope.
in terms of sending stuff out the door, all GDPR does is apply what you ought to be doing anyway, ie not randomly emails stuff out without thinking who might read it.
another option for zipping is Winzip Courier. We use it where necessary https://www.winzip.com/win/en/prodpageec.html
It works from within outlook and the paid version at £21 is worth having
I suspect you could put his accounts in large numbers on the side of a bus that passes his house so he can take a picture if you had his agreement. It is about a proportionate and consensual approach!
Note: I do not actually offer this service as there is often doubt about the numbers printed on the side of buses.
Or learn to use end-to-end email encryption and train your clients to do the same if they want to communicate securely. If you don't want to pay for a proprietary solution there is always GPG: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Privacy_Guard. (OK, I know this is not an easy answer. Secure email is now a 30-year-old technology that has still not found its way to widespread adoption.)
Or learn to use end-to-end email encryption and train your clients to do the same if they want to communicate securely. If you don't want to pay for a proprietary solution there is always GPG: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Privacy_Guard. (OK, I know this is not an easy answer. Secure email is now a 30-year-old technology that has still not found its way to widespread adoption.)
You could look at https://www.crypted-email.com/ - a fairly simple outlook addin for encrypting pdf/office docs. I am not actually using it at present but it looked fairly OK when I looked at it a few months back