Modernising your communication systems and switching over to internet-based calls makes daily communication wonderfully flexible, but running a digital network in the financial sector comes with some heavy legal responsibilities. If your firm handles banking, wealth management, or insurance, you cannot simply plug in standard office phones and hope the rest will sort itself out.
Financial firms have to adhere to strict rules from regulatory bodies like the Financial Conduct Authority, alongside data protection laws that dictate how every single telephonic conversation your team handles must be approached.
Why Is VoIP Compliance So Complex for Financial Firms?
If you are working in the financial industry, you know that every single day your business deals with very sensitive client details and important financial instructions. Because of this, regulators expect full transparency and strict oversight regarding how those client conversations are being recorded, stored, and protected.
The main concern is that voice data traveling across the internet can be vulnerable to interception if it isn’t properly secured. Furthermore, regulations require you to keep permanent, tamper-proof records of any conversation that leads to a financial transaction, but not all off-the-shelf phone setups can capture, encrypt, or securely archive call logs.
Additionally, hybrid working environments can also lead to some issues; for example, let’s say a financial advisor takes a quick client call on their personal phone without a secure routing app. Those calls will breach compliance if they go unrecorded or unsecured.
What Are the Regulatory Frameworks You Need to Meet to Remain Compliant With VoIP?
Meeting industry standards can feel overwhelming when you look at all the acronyms, but it helps to go through the specific mandates enforced across the United Kingdom:
- Financial Conduct Authority and MiFID II mandates: Under these rules, regulated firms must record every single phone conversation and electronic message that relates to client trades or investments. Thereafter, it must remain in an encrypted, tamper-proof cloud storage for five to seven years.
- UK GDPR and PECR: Under these privacy regulations, you need to let callers know upfront if conversations are being recorded before the chat even starts.
- PCI DSS requirements: If your team takes card payments or sensitive banking details over the phone, standard audio recordings can accidentally violate payment security standards. You have to ensure billing card details are never captured or stored in your archives.
How Can the Finance Industry Overcome Compliance Challenges That Come With VoIP Systems?
Even though remaining compliant might feel like a barrier, there are a few simple steps you can follow to make sure you do not breach any compliance regulations while using a VoIP system:
Deploy Automated Call Recording
Your business must search for a provider that offers cloud phone systems that record 100% of client calls automatically by default. This included function seems minor, but it ensures your team never misses a recording because someone simply forgot to hit the record button during a fast-paced client chat.
Enforce End-to-End Encryption
You can set up Transport Layer Security for your call signaling and Secure Real-Time Transport Protocol for your voice audio across all desk phones and mobile apps to stop third parties from eavesdropping on confidential client discussions.
Use Pause-and-Resume Tools
With VoIP, you can equip your system with automated masking or pause-and-resume features so that when a client mentions sensitive payment card details, it will instantaneously mute things like billing numbers to ensure that your client’s payment details remain safe.
Restrict Personal Device Usage Among Staff Members
To avoid any calls from breaching compliance, guide staff members away from using personal mobile lines for client discussions. Communicate the importance of remaining compliant and the implications of not taking it seriously. Additionally, provide approved business softphone apps that automatically log, route, and archive communications straight into your central business CRM system.
How Can You Set Your Financial Firm Up for Long-Term Communication Compliance With VoIP?
Compliance frameworks may seem like just another obstacle imposed by regulators, but as communication technology expands, hackers just find more ways to intercept and use personal information for their own malicious intentions. Therefore, in the same way financial firms care about a client’s financial future, the protection of personal information must also be a priority.
Therefore, staying abreast of certain VoIP features, data protection laws, and how your employees are handling client information is of paramount importance to prevent a damaged reputation or a hefty fine.
