When they are performing their fiduciary duties, board members are privy to sensitive information that has to remain confidential. If they’re discussing duty performance concerns of staff or discussing strategies for managing a competitor, it’s important that board members are able to discuss delicate information without fear of being leaked publicly.
To reduce the risk of leaks, boards are able to adopt a range of robust security measures such as restricting access to sharing, stopping sharing, encryption of documents and backing them up. They can also utilize an online secure board management software program which provides precise document control to prevent unauthorized printing screens, downloading or downloads and a complete audit trail of the user’s activities right down to page-level information.
A carefully drafted confidentiality policy for the board can ensure confidentiality of the board, as it informs directors of their responsibilities and establish the environment in which leaking information is considered to be unethical or dishonest. The chairman or the lead director can provide the policy to directors who are new before they are appointed as well as to directors who are currently in office prior to their term starting to allow them to ask questions and sign if they wish.
For the most sensitive data, a secure portal for boards that allows users to access documents only on devices they own and use exclusively for this purpose is the best way to safeguard confidential data. Govenda’s secure board portal offers high-end security, granular document control and tamper-proofed watermarks. It also prevents printing to files, blocks permissions for downloading, and records usage.