GFI Faxmaker 2011 now includes support Fax Over IP (FoIP) and features several enhancements – including security additions – to maximise efficiency and better serve the growing fax server market.
According to the company, these security features – which include the ability to securely save to a network share – mean that Faxmaker supports compliance with HIPAA and other regulations when dealing with fax-based communications in the healthcare environment.
HIPPA – the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act – is a US standards requirement that lays down stringent rules when dealing with patient's private medical data, amongst many other issues.
Title II of HIPAA, known as the Administrative Simplification provisions, has mandated the establishment of national standards for electronic health care transactions and national identifiers for US providers, health insurance plans, and employers.
Infosecurity notes that the provisions also address the security and privacy of health data. The standards are designed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the US health care system by encouraging the widespread use of secure electronic data interchange.
According to Scott, the enhancements to Faxmaker are the result of closer integration of security features within the communications environment in most organisations.
Despite this, he told Infosecurity that the IT environment – overall – has become a lot less flexible, with IT administrators no longer allowing software customisation as a standard facility for their users.
In parallel with this, the GFI CEO said that IT users are becoming more aware of security issues in the workplace and, as a result, are becoming a lot more choosy about what applications they will use.
"They are now looking for software quality, security and simplicity", he said, adding that these are likely to be the keys to the successful deployment of software in the enterprise environment in the near future.
Another area of interest on the communications and security front is the arrival of 'apps' for user tweaks of software in the workplace, he said, adding that IT managers are asking for these apps, since it allows them to offer controlled customisation to their users.
"We have been increasing the development of apps as a result of this. We are now developing around half a dozen apps for our software users every month", he said.