One way to maintain the privacy of business communications, especially in telephone interactions, is through a technology known as number masking.
Privacy has become an important issue in today's digital era, especially in business communications. As an integral part of operational activities, ensuring the confidentiality of business and customer information is a priority.
According to the results of a survey conducted by CISCO involving more than 4,700 security professionals in 26 countries around the world, demonstrating that privacy concerns bring profits to businesses. On average, they get a return of up to 2.7 times the investment value issued.
In response to these demands, various technologies have been developed to address privacy challenges, one of which is number masking. This technology allows communication between two parties without revealing the true identity of their phone numbers.
However, this concept is not something new. Before the digital era, businesses had used telephone operators to connect calls, similar to basic principles of number masking which uses modern technology.
Indonesian consumers are now more aware of their privacy rights. Combined with ever-tighter regulations and increased consumer awareness, brands in Indonesia are starting to look at privacy technology, such as number masking, as a worthwhile investment to consider.
This article will explore more about what number masking is, how it works, and why it can be a winning solution in the modern business era.
What is Number Masking?
Number masking is a method that allows a company to hide or "disguise" a real telephone number when communicating with another party.
This technology bridges communication between two parties without revealing their identities. It's like wearing a mask: what you see is a different face.
The numbers used in this process are often temporary and only active for the duration of the communication. This ensures that once communication is complete, both parties can no longer contact each other using that number.
The main goal is to protect user privacy, and prevent misuse of information.
How Does Number Masking Work?
When user A wants to contact user B through your platform, they will be redirected to a virtual phone number.
This virtual telephone number will then forward calls or messages to user B without displaying user A's real telephone number.
This process also applies in reverse when user B wants to reply or contact user A.
How to Implement Number Masking in Business
When a brand decides to adopt technology such as number masking, several important steps need to be taken. Knowing how to implement it correctly is key to maximizing the benefits of this technology.
Here are the steps your business can follow:
Choosing the Right Number Masking Provider
When searching online, you will find multiple phone number masking services available on the market. However, not all service providers offer the same quality and features. Things that need to be considered when choosing a provider include:
- Quality of service: Make sure the provider has a good track record of providing quality service.
- Additional features: Some providers may offer additional features that can increase the efficiency and effectiveness of business communications.
- Cost: Although quality must come first, of course, cost is also a consideration. Compare the price, with the features offered to get the best value.
- Technical support and assistance: In such cases as problems or obstacles, fast and responsive support from the provider is very important.
Want to know more details about this service? You can contact Telkomsel Enterprise which has a CPaaS Number Masking product that has been proven to be reliable and meets the four requirements above.
Steps to Implement Number Masking
After choosing the right provider, it's time to start the implementation process. Here is the general sequence of implementing this technology:
- Setup: This involves business account registration, setup setting according to needs, and integration with existing systems (eg CRM)
- Team Training: It is important for teams to understand how this technology works and how to use it properly. Training sessions or workshops can be very helpful in this process.
- Monitoring and evaluation: Once technology is implemented, it is important to monitor its performance. This helps in identifying areas that may require adjustments or improvements.
- Optimization: Based on insights obtained from monitoring, make adjustments to improve the performance and effectiveness of number masking.
Advantages of Number Masking
Here are some of the advantages that number masking solutions offer:
Confidentiality Guarantee
By masking the real number when communicating, customers will feel more comfortable and safe. They don't have to worry about their number being shared or misused. Without access to a real number, the risk of receiving spam calls or messages can also be reduced.
Increasing Customer Trust
When customers know they are communicating via a secure temporary number, it increases their trust in the brand. Because, with minimal access to real numbers, the risk of information leakage is very small.
Flexibility and Mobility
Whether via smartphone, tablet or other communication device, number masking technology can be accessed easily. In addition, the implementation and change process setting for number masking is usually simple and fast. This allows businesses to adapt to changing needs.
Better Business Decision Making
With the data available from the communications carried out, businesses can draw important insights for evaluation. By understanding existing communication patterns, businesses can better plan their next strategic steps.
Number Masking Case Study: Gojek
Privacy and security of user information are very important. One company that understands the importance of this is Gojek. Through implemented number masking technology, Gojek seeks to provide an additional layer of security for its partners and customers.
On the GoJek platform, when users communicate with driver-partners, either via SMS or calls, the real telephone numbers of both parties will be hidden and replaced with virtual numbers.
Advantages of Number Masking Technology in Gojek
- Privacy is guaranteed: With this technology, Gojek ensures that user identity remains safe. When communicating with a driver partner, users will see a telephone number that has been "masked", so that the privacy of both parties is maintained.
- Secure communication: Apart from privacy, this technology also offers additional security. Users don't have to worry that their phone numbers will be misused or shared without permission.
- Better customer experience: By providing virtual telephone numbers, Gojek ensures that the communication experience between users and driver partners becomes smoother and safer.
How does Number Masking work on Gojek?
- When users want to communicate with driver-partners, they only need to use the "Call" or "Chat" button available in the Gojek application.
- The user's real phone number will not be displayed to the driver. Instead, the driver will see a phone number that has been "masked."
- Likewise, when a driver wants to communicate with a user, they will also see a phone number that has been “masked”.
- It is important to note that this virtual phone number is only valid for the duration of the trip. Once the trip is complete, the user cannot use the virtual number to contact the driver-partner.
By implementing Number Masking technology, Gojek shows its commitment to maintaining the privacy and security of its users' information. This is a significant step forward in efforts to build trust and provide better service for all Gojek users.
Conclusion
In today's digital age, privacy has become one of the main issues faced by many brands and customers. Number masking emerged as an innovative solution that not only addresses privacy challenges but also offers several other advantages that can improve the quality and efficiency of business communications.
Number masking is a tool that allows two parties to communicate without having to know each other's telephone numbers. Through this technology, businesses can: maintain the confidentiality of customers' personal information, increase customer trust by ensuring the confidentiality of communications, and prevent misuse of information.
Moreover, by implementing this solution, businesses can gain valuable insights from the communication that occurs, allowing them to make more informed decisions based on the data they have.
With the increasing number of cases of personal data leakage, Telkomsel Enterprise presents innovative solutions through CPaaS Number Masking which can mask private telephone numbers.
This technology answers the need for digital privacy amid the massive use of digital services. The customer's original telephone number is maintained and safe from misuse. In addition, besides Number Masking, CPaaS also offers other solutions such as Robocall API for customer service needs and Video API for security when authenticating personal data via video calls.
Protect privacy and optimize your business communications with the leading CPaaS solution from Telkomsel Enterprise. Contact us now for more information.
