Many modern software platforms are held “in the cloud” and are known as SaaS (Software as a Service). Although this model may have some desirable advantages, such as access from any device with an internet connection and minimal hardware maintenance, there are also some serious down sides.

When you take into consideration that “the cloud” is just a trendy term for OPCs (other people’s computers), you can better understand the concerns with storing your lab’s sensitive customer data in it.

SECURITY VUNERABILITIES

The biggest issue with cloud services is security. That’s because you are storing your data somewhere else and you don’t have direct access to (or control over) it. Leaving this critical information in the hands of a faceless third-party could leave your business extremely vulnerable. You’ve probably heard about data breaches in some big companies that have exposed millions of their users’ sensitive information.

Recently, there have been a few serious data breaches within the healthcare industry, like that of 1.7 million Oregon Health Plan members and 134,000 UMass Chan Medical School students “enrolled in certain state programs.” Even very large, billion-dollar companies like Facebook, Twitter and T-Mobile can’t be trusted to keep your data secured. It’s not necessarily that these companies can’t protect your personal information, many of them just won’t.

CONNECTIVITY ISSUES

Another major downside of using cloud software for your business can be connectivity. Since cloud computing typically requires a high-speed internet connection, access to your customer’s data can be interrupted for undetermined amounts of time. Sometimes this could be due to an internet disruption on your end, but it could also be due to “maintenance” on the cloud server that your data is being stored on. Many times, the maintenance disruptions to your cloud software are unannounced and extremely frustrating.

You may have recently experienced some downtime during critical business hours if you’re currently using cloud-based lab management software. (You know who you are). This can be extremely detrimental for a business who is relying solely on cloud software for scheduling new cases and billing their customers.

ABS EVOLUTION IS *NOT* CLOUD-BASED

ABS offers an alternative to the ubiquitous cloud-based dental lab management software. Evolution is a local, server-client software, where the data is stored on your local computer. This gives you and your lab full control over your sensitive data. You own it. It’s yours. Once Evolution is installed on your machine, you will forever have access to your customers’ case info.

And, even though the software itself is local, ABS still has the ability to setup services for your customers to access their own case information through the internet. This allows data files to be transferred directly into your lab management software. Our ABS Support staff will gladly help you setup a robust lab management system with all of the bells and whistles. If you’d like to know more, please feel free to reach out to us any time.

LEARN MORE ABOUT EVOLUTION

Follow ABS on FaceBook and Twitter. Please contact us directly if you’d like to learn more about Evolution dental lab management software.