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Taking Advantage of User Authentication and Other Copier Security Features

Modern copy machine services are becoming increasingly more sophisticated. The modern MPS technician is often as much an IT professional as copier repair person. These technicians can even help set up the security features that manufacturers are building into their multifunction business machines. These tools help make your data more secure.

User Authentication

User authentication is a feature through which each supported user has a unique identifier, which the machine uses to identify them. Large companies may have a sophisticated user ID system into which their copiers can be integrated. However, even small offices can take advantage of this feature either through local support or cloud-based services. A powerful benefit of user authentication is knowing when and how an employee is using a particular machine.

Access Privileges

User authentication also facilitates access privileges. Another name for this feature is access control, and it means that you can determine not only who uses your copiers but how. A sales associate may have the access to print out receipts, but a sales manager may have the access to print out vouchers and other valuable and sensitive documents. Such control lowers costs because it reduces the need to possess different hardware for different applications.

Secured Printing

Secured printing is a powerful tool through which credentials can be assigned to a document or even all documents within a classification. When a user requests a copy, the machine uses the ID and the privileges to determine if the necessary credentials are met. If so, the copy is printed, and if not, the feature remains grayed out. The power of this feature is that it allows for access privileges localized to the data rather than having to be supported directly by the machine.

Notification of Usage

In an earlier example, a sales manager was given the privilege to print out vouchers that customers could use for future purchases. You may need a higher-level manager to be notified whenever such a voucher is printed so that it can be reviewed. Push notification support lets you hook into any particular privilege or document classification in order to be notified accordingly.