Almost half of organisations are relying on outdated, unsupported systems to manage their interaction records, opening themselves up to higher IT costs and regulatory risks, according to a report from compliance and records management provider Wordwatch.

The independent survey of 250 senior UK-based IT, telephony, contact centre, and compliance professionals operating in regulated industries found that 93% of organisations said they are required to retain interaction recordings for up to 10 years due to regulatory rules, and yet 79% are maintaining two or more legacy recording systems. In addition, 44% admitted to using at least one legacy recording system that is ‘end of life’ so is no longer supported.

The research also found that more than half of organisations still rely on manual processes to monitor the regulatory status of their data records, increasing the likelihood of human error and non-compliance. More than a quarter of respondents cited regulatory risk or financial penalties as their top concern regarding their communications recordings, while 20% were worried about the ability to retrieve specific records when needed.

Wordwatch's William Davenport, said: “Our research clearly shows that many regulated organisations are at a critical point when it comes to compliance archiving. The risks of maintaining outdated systems are simply too high, from regulatory penalties to data breaches.”

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