Document Access Guide for Data Processing Services

Outsourced data entry processing by EXCEL NEXUS will involve the submission of your documents at some stage, whether its an initial quotation, one off or ongoing data processing. The method of providing us access to your digital documents for our UK based data processing services will vary.

There are several ways of accessing your documents, below we will look at some of the options. Its a bit long winded but not everyone is familiar with secure cloud file sharing.

Let’s focus on Microsoft OneDrive Personal for now as its without doubt the easiest solution with the added benefit of it being built into Windows as default. The image below is of a simple personal OneDrive folder hierarchy, this could quite easily be a OneDrive for business, SharePoint, Google Drive or AWS (Amazon Web Services) for example, there are quite literally hundreds of cloud storage providers. All these cloud storage solutions have the same functionality, the ability to securely share selected files and folders.

This example will focus on a fictious client, ACME LTD who in this demonstration require us to carry out our professional PDF redaction services. This could be any aspect of our professional data processing services, but for clarity let’s just focus on PDF redactions. In the image, our client has their company folder named ACME LTD within their OneDrive. In this folder all aspects of the business are found, the “Customers” and “Suppliers” folders for example.

They have now created a folder called PDFs in their ACME LTD folder which they have now shared with us. Please note they have “only” granted us access to the PDFs folder, not the Customers or Suppliers folders. The only folder the recipient (EXCEL NEXUS) can view or access is this PDFs folder. This process takes less than a minute to setup, we can advise you over a simple phone call, as stated before it only takes a minute.

Now that the client has granted us access to this folder we can view or create any file or folder at will but only within the folder they shared, the PDFs folder. After discussing the best way forward, we created these 4 new folders (ORIGINAL PDFs, REDACTED PDFs, NEW PDFs, EXCEL DATABASE) all within the PDFs folder.

This is where we now perform our data processing services, the clients broader data storage remains secure and untouched.

Obviously, all our clients’ data processing services requirements differ, this was just an example of how easy it can be to setup a shared folder solution that can cover the vast majority of document access scenarios.

At any time, you can stop sharing this folder with one click for whatever reason.

We prioritise the security of your data. While some clients share their cloud storage directly, we understand that’s not always an option due to your security protocols. That’s why we offer a secure alternative: a dedicated upload folder.

Here’s how it works: We create an empty folder specifically for your project on one of our secure platforms like SharePoint or OneDrive for example. This folder is completely isolated and inaccessible to anyone outside of both of our company’s. You can then upload only the necessary files for your data processing needs or perhaps its just for a quotation, ensuring your broader data storage remains secure and untouched.

Data Processing Services-Alternative Document Access

Secure File Sharing Platforms
Cloud-based file-sharing platforms as covered above, offer a convenient and secure way to share your documents with us. Platforms like Dropbox, Google Drive or Microsoft OneDrive allow clients to upload files automatically to their shared folder thereby directly sharing the documents with us.

These platforms often provide options for password protection and access controls to ensure the confidentiality of the files. This is without doubt the best up, a centralised location for all data that is available 24/7 for all users with the added benefit of removing the tedium of constant forwarding documents within emails for example.

Email
Email is a widely used method for sharing documents, clients can send the documents as attachments in encrypted or password-protected emails to ensure the security of the data during transit. However, email attachments can have limitations on file size, so it may not be suitable for large or numerous files.

Additionally, clients will have to manually forward these documents to us each and every time. Having a shared folder completely negates this time-consuming action.

Secure FTP (File Transfer Protocol)
If you frequently deal with large or numerous files, you can use secure FTP services to transfer the documents to our server. FTP provides a secure and efficient method for file transfers and clients can use dedicated FTP clients or web-based interfaces to upload the files. Admittedly this can be complicated for anyone not familiar with this protocol.

Client Portals or Document Management Systems
Implementing a client portal or a document management system can streamline the process of receiving files from clients. These systems provide a secure online platform where clients can upload documents directly. They often offer encryption, access controls and audit trails to ensure data security.

Encrypted External Storage Devices
For highly sensitive or confidential documents, clients may choose to provide access through encrypted external storage devices, such as USB drives or external hard drives. These devices can be securely delivered to us, data processing services etc are carried out, device then gets returned through secure courier services.

In summary
It’s important to discuss and establish a preferred method of document transfer with our clients based on their security requirements, the volume of files and the convenience of both parties. The industry standard is the shared folder option due to its high levels of security and lower costs as it removes the need to manually send and more importantly receive documents.

Worry not, our highly trained UK team will hold your hand throughout the whole process, it’s not as complicated as it seems. For more information on our professional data entry services, please visit our Data Entry Services page.