As technology evolves, companies are shifting more and more rapidly to digital technology for record keeping, and that includes time clock devices. Rather than a rigid system of punching in and out utilizing a time clock, many companies have moved to online time-keeping systems and time clocks.
This shift allows greater flexibility and a more organized approach, which eases the strain on the payroll and accounting departments and allows employees more ease and accessibility when recording their time.
Online time-clocks now allow employees to clock in and out simply by connecting to the internet from a computer. However, this can raise concerns with security, particularly concerns about the security of information. The good news is that quality on line time clock software has systems in place to secure your information and keep your hours and identity protected.
Data Encryption
When you go the web address to enter your time or hours, note the way that the URL appears in the bar. If it starts with https://, that indicates that the data is encrypted using SSL or HTTPS. You should also see a small padlock in the URL bar. Data encryption is actually one of the most effective ways to secure data, because it requires a password or secret key in order to access or decrypt the data.
Any time data is entered or transmitted, it should be encrypted. Text or data that is encrypted is referred to as cipher text, and it is illegible without the key or passcode to unencrypt it.
Data Reliability
Another method used to secure and protect online timeclocks is to ensure that the host – whoever is providing the timekeeping service – is in a center that is monitored constantly. The host or company should have an IT team that is dedicated to monitoring the servers for errors, breaches, attempted breaches, and systems failures. With specialists continually monitoring the system for breaches and security issues, there is increased security ensuring that leaks and hacks do not occur, and that data won’t be lost due to system failures.
Backups
When selecting an online time clock system, it is a good idea to verify that the data is regularly backed up onto another server. No matter how secure a system is, technical errors can occur, and so for added safety, quality time clock systems will keep a data backup in the event of emergency and disaster.
With these measures in place, on line time systems are a safe, effective, streamlined way to manage payroll, adding convenience and efficiency for employees and payroll.