Survey finds one-third of financial firms use secure Internet document delivery.

Only one-third of financial institutions using the Internet to send confidential documents to customers, partners and service providers are doing so by using a secure electronic document delivery solution, according to a survey by Wolters Kluwer Financial Services, Minneapolis.

Nearly 62 percent of the 347 banks, credit unions and mortgage companies responding to the survey said they are using the Internet to transmit confidential documents such as loan disclosures and documents. Of those institutions, however, only one-third said they are using a secure electronic delivery solution, according to Wolters Kluwer.

Approximately another one-third are using traditional e-mail, which does not encrypt customer data. The remaining one-third of respondents indicated they use less-secure document delivery methods such as password-protected e-mail and Web sites; regular or overnight mail; or they are not sure of the method they use, noted the Wolters Kluwer survey.

The recent growth of identity theft and other forms of electronic fraud make it harder to send documents or information safely via traditional mail, e-mail and Web sites. Even with password protection, fraudsters can hack into these systems to access customer information, according to Jason Marx, vice president and general manager, mortgage, Wolters Kluwer Financial Services.

"A secure electronic delivery system that encrypts sensitive data so only the sender and receiver can view can help better protect confidential data and documents," said Marx. "The return on investment of implementing such a system can be well worth it for a financial institution when they consider the financial, legal and reputational risk tied to a data-security breach," he added.