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Businesses always look for efficiency in everything, from sales to customer service. When it comes to communication, speed, and accessibility are the topmost priorities.
Possessing the ideal qualities companies seek, instant messaging for business has become a staple in official communications. However, it is essential to understand that while messaging has delivered plenty of advantages of improved message relay, they have pitfalls.
Are instant messaging platforms safe for business communications? Below are the risks you might encounter:
Informality
Before instant messaging was leveraged for business use, it was primarily for casual conversations. People would habitually use all sorts of emojis, text slang, acronyms, and many other informal ways of messaging. These sloppy texts may be considered inappropriate in business.
Your employees may have been accustomed to instant messaging for casual talk, so they might use informalities when conversing in official settings. While this is not a significant risk to your company’s survival, informalities in communications could negatively impact your business image.
Security Breaches
Instant messaging provides a platform for easy communication transfer, which can also be problematic. As cybercriminals become more clever in their tactics, your company is more prone to security breaches when using instant messaging.
Phishing and hacking are more prevalent than ever, and if you are not careful, you could lose confidential data through instant messaging. The larger your company’s systems, the easier it can be for hackers to gain access.
Remember only to use secure instant messaging apps and activate safeguards like end-to-end encryption and 2FA to secure your information.
Unethical Behavior
It is fairly easy to send messages and delete them. Contemporary instant messaging applications allow users to send “self-destructing” messages, which disappear permanently and erase the conversation.
So, what’s wrong with that? The speed and convenience at which a user can delete messages make it easy to perform inappropriate behavior. Your employees could harass a coworker through chats or send misinformation to customers without you knowing.
You can easily counter this with proper monitoring and an archiving system.
Legal Issues
Perhaps the biggest risk for companies using text messaging is the law. The combination of irresponsible use, lack of supervisory procedures, and nonchalant attitude can put your company in grave danger if instant messages become relevant to litigation.
Depending on how your business handles instant messaging, these conversations can help defend you from lawsuits or could drag your brand in the mud.
Regardless, a court may require you to produce records of all company chats sent to and from your instant messaging channels. Failure to present the necessary documents could result in harsh penalties, mainly if you belong to a highly regulated sector.
Protect Your Company’s Messages
All of these threats are easily resolvable with the right archiving solution. If you are not yet aware, instant messaging archives are tools that capture and store all messages your company sends and receives daily, creating an extensive, valuable record in keeping your company safe from security and legal trouble.
Partner with LeapXpert today to get started on your responsible communications journey.
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