While an accountancy firm may be rightfully excited about all the ways that AI adoption can streamline workflows, clients may be less excited about the prospect of these tools being rolled out.
Opposition to AI is varied, but many concerns are rooted in a fear that data is more vulnerable when these systems are being implemented.
For accountants to make the most of emerging technology while keeping clients happy, it is worth understanding these concerns and seeking ways to address them.
Is client data vulnerable when AI tools are used?
Protecting client data should be the highest priority of any accountant.
While you will be engaging with multiple clients throughout the working week, each piece of data represents a person’s livelihood or their business prospects and should be viewed accordingly.
This is where understanding the potential drawbacks of different AI systems becomes vital to ensure that an accountant does not accidentally breach GDPR rules and leave clients vulnerable.
Generic AI systems and Large Language Models (LLMs) are notorious for the way in which they lack the required provisions to offer the kind of protection to make them suitable for use with confidential information.
Although different models have made varying levels of commitment to keeping input information secure, this has consistently been shown to not be the case, as information becomes the basis for future iterations of the model by being used as training data.
As such, accountants should be mindful of the ways in which generic AI systems are used and stick to technology developed specifically for the profession where possible.
How do accountants know when client data is secure?
Before adopting any piece of technology, an accounting firm should explore its data protection guardrails to verify that they are fit for purpose.
It will not be a sufficient excuse if something were to go wrong that the accounting firm was unaware that the technology was not up to the task.
Glasscubes was built around the ethos that true efficiency can only come from using a trusted piece of technology and that technology can only be trusted when it is fully compliant.
Rather than inputting sensitive information into a generic LLM, accountants can use the bespoke AI within Glasscubes to extract and analyse financial data from both physical and digital sources.
This data is only visible to those within the accountancy firm who need to access the client information and is not part of any training model for future developments.
Even getting the information from clients in a secure way is something that many accounting firms struggle with.
Fortunately, Glasscubes provides a secure, GDPR-compliant form of communication with clients.
Instead of exposing your system to risk by asking clients to create an account and hoping they choose a good password, Glasscubes lets you send a simple upload link directly to clients.
They upload just the requested information and do not pose a risk to your system and do not give more information than is required, lowering the strain on you to protect their data.
These reminders are automated and fully tailored to the client, meaning your team does not have to devote excess time and energy to getting the information they need to start working.
Data protection will likely be the biggest factor behind whether clients trust the technology their accountants adopt and a data breach is a surefire way to tarnish your reputation.
Conduct your due diligence and see how client data guardrails are at the core of our technology by booking a demo today.
