Cloud-based time clocks make managing your staff much easier. You may finally say goodbye to messy, handwritten timesheets, drastically minimize payroll errors, and receive clear, real-time information.
However, this ease comes with a new, crucial responsibility: protecting the data that these time clock devices collect.
Employee Data Security Is Not Optional
It's imperative to keep this information secure for two main reasons. One, data protection laws are becoming more stringent, so you need to stay in compliance. Two, you need to keep your staff's trust. Your staff has to trust that its personal information will be kept protected, not carelessly exposed to risk.
The High Cost of a Data Breach
An employee data breach can cost your company dearly. You could face massive fines from regulators, especially if biometric data is involved.
Imagine if your staff schedules, personal contact info, or work records were leaked online. Besides a serious legal problem, it's also a reputational disaster. And customers and partners will question a company that can't even protect its own team's data. Winning back that trust is a long, difficult process.
Building Employee Trust: A Priceless Asset
Your team is your most important asset. When you introduce a new time clock, especially one that uses fingerprints or facial recognition, employees will naturally have questions.
They might worry, "Is my boss spying on me?" "Is a picture of my fingerprint being stored?" "Could it be stolen?" If your team feels their personal information is being collected without being kept safe, it can crush morale, lower productivity, and create suspicion between management and staff.
Conversely, a secure, transparent process shows you respect your team and take their privacy seriously.
Legal and Compliance Hurdles
From the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) in the U.S. to regulations worldwide, laws are placing strict limits on how businesses can collect, store, and use biometric data. These laws often demand explicit, written employee consent and have specific rules for data deletion. Using a non-compliant time clock is like knowingly placing your business in expensive legal jeopardy.
How a Secure Time Clock Actually Works
The most common employee worry is that the time clock stores a picture of their fingerprint or face.
The answer is: A well-designed, secure time clock absolutely does not do this. Modern technology is built specifically to protect biometric data.
Myth vs. Fact: What Happens to Your Fingerprint?
- Myth: The time clock keeps a "picture" file of my fingerprint.
- Fact: The system uses an encrypted process called biometric "templating."
Think of this process as creating a unique, one-way digital "key" for your fingerprint, not taking a photo of it:
- Enrollment: The first time an employee uses the scanner, the algorithm analyzes dozens of unique points on their fingerprint (like where ridges end or split).
- Template Creation: The system does not save the image. It uses these unique points to generate a complex mathematical code (the "template") via an irreversible algorithm.
- Secure Storage: This scrambled, encrypted code is the only thing saved for verification.
- Verification: The next time the employee clocks in, the scanner creates a new, temporary code and compares it to the saved template. If they match, the punch is recorded.
The key point: This encrypted template is one-way. It cannot be reverse-engineered back into an image of the employee's fingerprint. Even if a hacker stole this template, it would be useless to them—like finding a key without knowing what lock it belongs to. This method confirms identity without ever storing the employee's original raw data.
The Journey of a "Punch": Sending Data Securely
After an employee's punch is approved, that data (their ID and timestamp) has to travel from the time clock to the cloud software. A secure system uses end-to-end encryption before the data even leaves the device.
This is like putting your punch data in a digital "armored car" for its journey. Even if someone "eavesdrops" on your Wi-Fi network, all they can intercept is unreadable, scrambled gibberish.
Locked Down: Storing Data Securely (Encryption at Rest)
The data's job isn't done when it reaches the cloud. It must also be protected while it's being stored (known as "encryption at rest"). This means your company's time and attendance records are stored in a scrambled, unreadable format on the server. If someone managed to break into the server, your data would still be a useless, encrypted file without the decryption keys.
The Role of a Secure Cloud Foundation (The "Backend")
The "cloud" refers not just to a concept, but an actual physical data center. Your time clock's security relies strongly on that data center's quality.
You won't necessarily view the "backend," but it's a characteristic component of your time clock. Most reliable time tracking services (such as NGTeco) base their programs on big, secure platforms such as Amazon Web Services (AWS). It's a decision that pays dividends for you personally, since such platforms come with powerful, built-in security measures at the level of the server, including:
- Physical Security: Guards on site 24/7, monitoring, and biometric access for securing the buildings.
- Network Protection: Built-in protection for large-scale online attacks (like DoS/DDoS attacks).
- Strong Firewalls & Encryption: Powerful electronic "fences" and encryption of data.
- Redundancy: Your information gets duplicated in various places, so it will not get lost during floods, wildfires, or hardware crashes.
When your time clock vendor employs a service such as AWS, your small business gets to "borrow" a huge, billion-dollar security system. You receive enterprise-level security and assurance, no security expertise required.
4 Key Questions to Ask Your Time Clock Provider
When evaluating a provider, don't just look at features and price. You must vet their security practices. A transparent, confident provider should be able to answer these questions easily.
The Biometric Question: "Template or Image?"
Ask them to confirm: "Do you store biometric images or encrypted templates?" The only acceptable answer is "encrypted templates" or "codes." Be wary of any vague response.
The Encryption Question: "In-Transit and At-Rest?"
Ask: "Is my data encrypted while it's traveling and while it's being stored on your servers?" The answer must be a clear "yes" to both.
The Compliance Question: "Are You Audited by Experts?"
You can also ask a more technical question: "Are your systems independently audited for security?" (e.g., SOC 2 or ISO 27001 certification). This proves their security claims have been verified by outside experts.
The Access Question: "Who Can See My Data?"
Your software should put you in full control. You need the ability to set user permissions. A shift manager, for example, should only be able to view their team's records, not the entire company's. This granular control is a key part of any secure policy.
NGTeco: Secure and Simple Management
For a small business owner, handling all these security details can feel overwhelming. You need a time clock that is secure right out of the box.
NGTeco's cloud-connected machines, like the TC series, are built with these security principles in mind. Our solution runs on the secure AWS cloud platform, giving your business top-level data protection without you needing to hire an IT staff. You can manage your team's attendance data through a secure app, knowing that your data is being protected by professionals. You get the clear, accurate records you need, and your employees' data stays safe.
What’s Next for Data Security
Data privacy is not a "set it and forget it" topic. As technology and threats evolve, your security practices must be able to adapt.
Evolving Threats and Stricter Laws
New online threats appear daily. At the same time, governments are constantly passing new, stricter privacy laws. Your time clock provider must be a long-term partner that keeps its software updated to defend against new threats and help you stay compliant with new rules.
More Transparency and User Control
In the future, people will demand more openness. Employees will want to know exactly what data is collected, why it's collected, and how it is used. Companies that choose open, secure, and transparent time clock solutions will be far better prepared to meet these expectations and build a stronger company culture.
Security Is the Foundation of Trust
Choosing a secure time clock is a key business decision, not just a tech upgrade. It protects your employee data, helps you follow the law, and demonstrates to your team that you care about their privacy.
This builds a culture of trust and openness. And that trust is the foundation of any strong, modern business.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q1: What happens if our time clock is stolen or damaged?
Your data remains completely safe in the cloud because it's not stored on the device, so a stolen or damaged clock does not mean a data breach. You can simply connect a new clock, log in, and continue working without any data loss.
Q2: Can owners see an employee's actual fingerprint image?
No, because the system's design protects everyone's privacy, including from administrators. You can see punch records (who, where, when), but you can never access, view, or download the raw biometric image or its encrypted code.
Q3: How long must I legally keep employee time clock data?
This depends on federal and state laws. For example, the U.S. FLSA generally requires you to keep records for two to three years, but state laws may require longer, so you should always check with a local legal or HR expert to ensure compliance.
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