Securing Sensitive Data, Improving the Client Experience

The threat is real: your identity is always at risk in today’s digital world. Even if you are “old school” and like to do things with paper and wet signatures, the truth is, everything ends up in “the cloud” one way or another. There isn’t a single financial institution that operates independent or disconnected from the vast networks that weave their way through the world’s financial infrastructure.

When your Financial Advisor asks you to email or text a copy of your driver’s license, a scan of your latest tax return, or a phone pic of your passport, take a moment. Pause. Maybe even meditate for a minute or two.?        

What happens if your email has been hacked? What if your PC has malware running in the background, capturing this data? What happens if that email or text message is, somehow, intercepted and diverted to a different destination? What if it’s not, but instead all that sensitive data is copied and shared wildly, on the Dark Web, for the criminal underworld to exploit?

Do you really believe in 2022 this doesn’t happen, routinely? It’s definitely happening quite regularly, as a study by a leading email security vendor noted that 85% of law firms have had an email data breach in the last 12 months . Following a breach – the data can be used in anyway, and end up anywhere.??

Sounds scary, right? Maybe even alarmist? The truth is, identity theft is a huge issue in Canada, and scams of every form have become so ubiquitous to become almost background noise. We now expect them. Even our filtered and screened email inboxes get hit with garbage – not to mention our cell phones. The issue now is that 91% of cyber attacks start with an email . What was once the purview of land lines and irritating robocalls, has evolved into sophisticated, nefarious “scampaigns” – scam campaigns designed to inflict maximum damage to unsuspecting consumers, voters and taxpayers.

Even though Google’s Security Center is filtering out 10 million spam emails per minute, clearly many of these are slipping through, and it just takes 1 to cause significant damage. Any trick can work – especially considering how the pandemic has made everyone more exhausted, unconsciously resulting in a lower level of alertness when it comes to protecting sensitive client information.1.

Even wary, discerning computer-literate folks can fall victim easily today.

Ask yourself an important question: what is my wealth management firm doing to protect me, and my data? What are they doing to secure this sensitive information and defend against such violations?

The answer will likely disappoint you. It seems that some of the largest financial institutions still operate in the 1990s, with fax machines and dot-matric matrix printers. When they do use email, it’s pretty rudimentary with a poor client experience, something that’s recognized by 83% of the IT managers themselves! . Some firms won’t email at all – as though this is the solution – and insist on other allegedly secure methods.

SideDrawer is a Canadian fintech innovator bringing a much needed injection of digital security and usability to the wealth management business – for those financial firms looking to take a lead in securing client-advisor communications. A SideDrawer account is essentially a virtual filing cabinet, with various folders inside, each containing documents. Moving documents into folders can be done securely through the SideDrawer online platform or though a smartphone app. Downloading them is easy. Sharing them securely with other collaborators (a spouse, family member, POA) is safe and easy. Providing access to your accountant to upload/download tax returns into your “Tax” folder is, likewise, safe and easy.??

At New Outlook Wealth, SideDrawer is at the very heart of our client-centric advice and service ecosystem, securing – around the clock – the exchange of data and storing it in a digital vault. SideDrawer’s bank-level data security is second to none. We sponsor the SideDrawer for our clients, so they get world-class digital security for themselves, their families, and their businesses at no cost to them.?

“New Outlook’s commitment to a secure, digital-first platform for its clients and advisors was evident from our very first meeting,” said Ali Qureshi, Co-Founder of SideDrawer. “Michael was obsessed with ensuring that SideDrawer offered value to the client, was easy to use, and ultimately was beneficial to the advisors on the New Outlook platform. We believe a major driver of success has been appointing dedicated technology staff, thereby allowing advisors to do what they do best, support clients on their financial and estate related matters. We’re thrilled to see the strong positive responses from the technology staff, advisors and their clients, and look forward to continued growth at New Outlook!,” Qureshi added.??

Our advisors are, for all intents and purposes, prohibited from moving sensitive client information by email or text messages. This is critical as there is an enormous amount of personal client data shared and transmitted online for account openings for investments, in applying for insurance, and for purposes of financial planning. We have been successfully engaging our Advisor’s trusted partners to work on clients files right on the platform – reviewing documents securely, completing digital signatures, all the while maintaining a high degree of transparency to the client with all the activity taking place. This way no client is left second-guessing who has access to their personal and confidential information.??

For advisors, ask yourself:

“Does my dealer or brokerage offer this to me and my clients? If not, why not?”

For clients, ask yourself:

“Does my advisor offer this level of security? When was the last time I emailed a bank statement, my driver’s license, or my SIN (social insurance number)?”