Today, more and more companies are shifting to remotely accessible data management tools like virtual data rooms.
The term “data room software” is not new in the business fraternity, but businesses have unfolded the importance of this incredibly secure data management technology in the past few years.
But what makes online data room software popular and needed among organizations of all sizes? Or, more precisely, what can it offer to your business? Let’s find it out!
What is virtual data room software?
If a data room is to be defined in simple words, it is a secure online data storage platform where you can safely manage, store, share, or distribute any form of private or sensitive data. The data can be in the form of documents, images, audio files, videos, etc.
Online or electronic data room software also covers all bases for secure online communication in business spheres. You don’t need to use multiple apps to manage data and communicate with your peers — an online data room does everything in one place.
Virtual data rooms are a regular part of global deal management practices, especially M&As, joint ventures, partnerships, IPOs, and fundraising.
Benefits of a secure virtual data room
A secure virtual data room is differentiable in many ways. Here is how.
Compliance with global security standards
Data room vendors are not free to use, unlike many services you often see online. That is because data rooms are products hosted by certified data room providers.
Certified data room services mean they comply with all the regulatory requirements set by globally or geographically accepted organizations like ISO, SOC, GDPR, FINRA, and HIPAA. These certifications set some of the best online data management practices each data room vendor has to comply with.
Platform protection
Digital security is the biggest benefit of a secure virtual data room. The good thing is that there are several security layers in VDRs to protect your information in various ways.
For instance, service providers mostly have backups at geographically dispersed data stations. It makes sure that your data is safe from accidental or disaster-hit losses.
The tool itself has different protective shields which prevent data thefts. A multi-step verification feature ensures legal or authorized logins while device control allows you to authorize or block any device from the data room. The device purging option is a life-saver as it allows deleting any device and the data stored or downloaded from your VDR.
Document protection
Document protection is the next step in virtual data room security. These features are super useful for internal and external threats. For example, even if someone manages to break the security walls, they still won’t be able to do any damage. Here are a few mentionable document security features in data rooms:
- Digital or dynamic watermarks for copyright protection and tracking changes in a document
- The view-only feature shows the document like an image; nobody can edit, share, delete, annotate, overwrite, save, download, or print it.
- Fence-view mode hides the selected content in a document and is commonly used for external data sharing.
- The access revoke feature gives the user the luxury of revoking access to any document at any time.
Common benefits of virtual data room technology
In addition to digital security, data room software is beneficial in the following ways.
Fast data sharing
It will be hard to find a tool that shares data faster than VDRs. You can share hundreds of documents with multiple users at once. Just use the bulk upload and drag-n-drop feature to upload as many files as you want and share them instantly with others. You can create live document links and make real-time alterations in files.
Remote access
Virtual data rooms give you the freedom of accessing your information whenever and wherever you want. It doesn’t matter if you are in a desert or a hill station. All you need is an internet connection and a smartphone to stay connected to your organization or team.
Cost minimization
Virtual data rooms are paid tools, but they are relatively economical. They are cheaper than in-house data management systems and minimize your administrative expenses too.
If you are looking for a VDR for your organization, some of the best data rooms include iDeals, SecureDocs, Merrill, Sharevault, Caplinked, DealRoom, and Intralinks.
Key takeaways
- Data rooms are multi-functional corporate cloud storage solutions that serve as:
- Secure data repositories
- Communication platforms
- Deal management tools
- What makes virtual data room software especially beneficial is its multi-layered protection. Data rooms comply with global security standards, provide bank-grade platform security and multi-level document protection.
- The main data room benefits are fast data sharing, reduced costs, and easy yet secure access to sensitive data from anywhere and at any time.
- Some of the best virtual data room providers are iDeals, SecureDocs, Merrill, Sharevault, Caplinked, DealRoom, and Intralinks.