Key Takeaways Financial services firms must archive all electronic communications, including email, SMS, chat and social media, under regulations like SEC Rule 17a-4, FINRA Rules 4511 and 3110, SOX and GLBA. Retention periods range from three to seven years, depending on the regulation and record type. A compliant archiving solution must support WORM-compliant storage, granular […]
What Is Data Archiving? Definition, Benefits, and Best Practices
Key Takeaways Data archiving moves inactive communications and records into secure, indexed, long-term storage, separate from production systems. Compliance with regulations like SOX, HIPAA, SEC Rule 17a-4, and FOIA is the primary driver for most organizations. A strong archiving strategy requires cross-department collaboration, automated retention policies, and defensible deletion workflows. The right archiving solution should […]
Archive vs. Delete Emails: What’s the Difference and Which Is Better?
Key Takeaways Archiving preserves emails in searchable storage, while deleting removes them permanently after the trash retention window ends. For regulated organizations, deleting emails before the retention period expires can create compliance and legal risk. Gmail and Outlook’s “Archive” button helps manage the inbox, but it is not the same as compliance-grade email archiving. Enterprise […]
Data Retention Policy Explained: A Comprehensive Overview
Key Takeaways A data retention policy defines how long your organization stores each type of data and how you dispose of it when the retention period ends. State and industry regulations (HIPAA, SOX, FINRA, GDPR, FOIA) mandate specific retention periods, and non-compliance can result in fines, sanctions, or criminal liability. A strong policy covers data […]
Archiving Text Messages: Why It Matters for Compliance, Ediscovery, and Risk Management
Key Takeaways Text messages, calls, and mobile chats are legally recognized business records in most regulated industries. Regulations, including FINRA, SEC, HIPAA, GDPR, and FOIA, require organizations to retain and produce mobile communications. Failure to archive has led to billions in fines, particularly in financial services for off-channel messaging violations. Enterprise archiving solutions capture messages […]
Data Governance Strategy: Guide for Compliance-Driven Organizations
Key Takeaways Data governance is the system of policies, roles and processes that determines how your organization manages, protects and uses data throughout its lifecycle. A data governance strategy is a compliance requirement for regulated organizations that need to pass audits, respond to records requests and reduce legal exposure under HIPAA, FOIA, FERPA, SEC 17a-4, […]
10 Microsoft Outlook Alternatives
Microsoft reports that more than 430 million people use Microsoft 365 apps. That makes Outlook one of the most widely used email clients in the world. Teams pick it for enterprise-grade security, deep Office integrations, and a broad feature set, but the case for evaluating Outlook alternatives is stronger than it’s been in years. That […]
How to Deal with Social Media Defamation: Examples and Steps to Take
Key Takeaways Social media defamation occurs when someone publishes a false statement of fact online that harms another person’s or organization’s reputation. To be actionable, the statement must be false, published to a third party, and cause demonstrable harm. Preserve evidence immediately, including screenshots, URLs, timestamps, and metadata, before the content is edited or deleted. […]
Effective Email Retention Policy Best Practices for Staying Compliant
Key Takeaways An email retention policy defines how long an organization should keep emails before they can be deleted. In most industries, retention periods range from 1 to 7 years. Some emails must be kept longer or permanently, depending on the regulation and record type. The most common U.S. laws that require email retention are […]
Compliance Lessons from Major FINRA and SEC Texting Fines
Key Takeaways Recordkeeping has shifted from a back-office task to one of the most consequential compliance risks financial firms face today. The most common violations stem from unarchived messages on encrypted messaging apps like WhatsApp, iMessage, and Signal, compounded by personal devices and remote work arrangements that put communications outside compliance controls. The enforcement net […]
