Consumer Messaging App Security—What’s Wrong if They’re Encrypted Too?

3 min read

We all want to guard our data and personal information, so there are legitimate concerns about how to keep our messages private. That’s why cybersecurity is such a hot topic. And that’s also why the stakes are even higher for work product. Sharing information ASAP is critical for time-sensitive scenarios related to public safety. But we have to consider the big picture of messaging app security too.

 

Instant Communication for Public Safety 

For a lot of first responders, using a standard messaging app on their phone had been their go-to way for touching base with other team members. They don’t want to sift through the chatter on the radio, and checking an email inbox gets old fast. It’s also really easy for those messages to get buried.

Texting is great because we usually have our phone right in our pocket. It’s fast, and we generally think of them as being “encrypted.” In terms of connecting instantly, sending texts seems to make sense. But for the public safety and government employees, it’s not as secure as you’d think. Agencies need to have all of their team members’ work-related communications archived to comply with the state and federal records retention requirements. Regular texting can’t do that.

It’s time for teams to have a different type of encrypted texting app. Not one that the general public or just any consumer can use. The real solution is to go with a secure chat app that’s specifically built for first responders. We need to get public safety employees off the regular texting and get to a chat option that’s actually compliant.

Your Messaging App Security 

How we communicate on the job isn’t the same as how we text in our personal lives. Both types of apps require a high level of encryption, but the rules for government, police and first responders go beyond that. The solution for these types of professionals need to have built-in security features that protect users from legal action.

There are very specific issues that can be brought to light whenever an agency has employees using public messaging apps for work communications. That comes with the risk of having individual cell phones subpoenaed. It all boils down to a different type of application security. With our work product, we need to make sure that our messages are encrypted AND securely stored. Agencies that have a solution to automatically archive work-related communications are better equipped to stay in the clear.

 

Stay Compliant with Evertel

A basic consumer encrypted texting app might be easy to use, but it won’t honor the state and federal records retention requirements. This is a major problem. It can also be illegal if the consumer app allows public safety employees to delete data, chats, and shared information. Even though public messaging app security has improved year over year, those types of apps are NOT compliant with CJIS and other public safety mandates.

Fortunately, there’s a way to make the convenience of a typical encrypted texting app even better. You need a communications tool that actually protects your team from civil liabilities. That’s how the Evertel app can help.

With Evertel, agencies get encrypted messaging app security—plus functionality that actually makes sense for the way you work. Your communications can actually be sorted into chat rooms for easy organization. You can also send direct messages or even agency-wide alerts for critical situations.

How your employees communicate and connect while on the job shouldn’t jeopardize your agency’s reputation. By moving your day-to-day correspondence to Evertel, you can have the confidence knowing that all of your messages are archived for compliance and totally secure.

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