Secure client portal
Your clients share tax returns, bank statements, contracts, and financial records. They expect those documents to be encrypted, access-controlled, and visible only to the right people. Portico is a client portal built with that expectation as the default.
| Security layer | What it means | Table stakes or differentiator | Portico |
|---|---|---|---|
| Encryption in transit (TLS 1.2+) | Protects data while it moves between the browser and server | Table stakes — every reputable SaaS tool has this | TLS 1.2+ on all connections |
| Encryption at rest (AES-256) | Protects stored files if someone breaches the server | Table stakes | AES-256 through AWS S3 |
| Per-client data isolation | Client A cannot see Client B's documents, even if they share a portal | Differentiator — many tools use shared folders or link-based access | Database scoped per team, per-client isolation |
| Access controls (RBAC) | Team members see only what they need. Clients see only their own onboarding. | Differentiator | Role-based access for team, magic-link isolation for clients |
| Audit trail | Timestamped log of every action — who viewed, uploaded, signed, or approved | Differentiator | SHA-256 hash-chained, tamper-proof, exportable |
| Authentication without passwords | No passwords for clients to leak, reuse, or forget | Differentiator | Magic link (single-use, expires after use) |
| GDPR compliance | Consent collection, data export, right to erasure, retention policies | Required for EU clients | Built in: consent, export, erasure, configurable retention |
| SOC 2 Type II | Independent third-party audit of security controls over 6 to 12 months | Gold standard for SaaS vendors | Planned (runs on SOC 2-certified AWS infrastructure) |
| HIPAA compliance | Required only if you handle protected health information (PHI) | Only needed for healthcare-adjacent businesses | Not supported |
| Feature | Portico | Content Snare | Clustdoc | Moxo | SuiteDash | HoneyBook | Google Drive |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Encryption (transit and rest) | |||||||
| Passwordless or 2FA | Magic links | 2FA | 2FA | 2FA | 2FA | 2FA | Google 2FA |
| Per-client isolation | Limited | ||||||
| Audit trail | SHA-256 hash-chained | Activity log | 7-year retention | Basic | Admin console only | ||
| GDPR tools | Limited | Limited | Google DPA | ||||
| SOC 2 or ISO 27001 | Planned | SOC 2 | ISO 27001 | SOC 2 | None claimed | None claimed | SOC 2 (Google) |
| HIPAA | Higher tiers | BAA available | |||||
| Starting price | Free | $35/mo | $190/mo | Free (2 flows) | $19/mo | $19/mo | Free (15 GB) |
Any service business that collects sensitive documents from clients needs encryption, access controls, and an audit trail.
Tax returns, W-2s, bank statements, and EINs contain sensitive financial data with regulatory expectations. A misconfigured shared folder can expose one client's financials to another.
Tax returns, W-2s, 1099s, bank statements, EINs
Contracts, case documents, and privileged communications require strict access controls. Attorney-client privilege makes per-client isolation a professional obligation, not a preference.
Engagement letters, case files, contracts, privileged communications
Client financials, strategic documents, and competitive data demand confidentiality. Clients sharing sensitive business information expect it to be visible only to the people working on their account.
Financial reports, strategic plans, competitive analyses, NDAs
Names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and payment details fall under GDPR and other data protection regulations. An encrypted client portal with access logging is the minimum standard.
Government IDs, SSNs, bank details, payment information
See how Portico works for accountants, law firms, and consultants. Or explore the client portal use case.
A four-person bookkeeping firm handles tax documents for 30 clients. They collect W-2s, 1099s, bank statements, and EINs every tax season. Their current setup: Google Drive shared folders for documents, DocuSign for engagement letters, and email for everything else.
Last year, a client's folder was accidentally shared with another client through a misconfigured link. The firm had no audit trail to determine what was accessed or for how long. The incident was minor, but the liability exposure was not.
The firm needs per-client isolation so one client cannot see another's documents. They need access logging to prove who viewed what and when. They need encryption at rest and in transit as a baseline. Three of their clients are EU-based, so GDPR compliance tools are required. They do not need HIPAA since they do not handle medical records. SOC 2 certification is preferred but not required — running on SOC 2-certified infrastructure is acceptable.
Using the security checklist above, they can evaluate any portal tool in 15 minutes. The criteria that matter most for their practice: per-client isolation, audit trails, and GDPR tools. Encryption is table stakes. HIPAA is irrelevant. The checklist turns a vague security conversation into a concrete comparison.
Related: How to collect documents from clients and Best client portal software compared.
Every layer in the checklist above maps to a specific feature in Portico. Full technical details are on the security page.
Every file, form response, and signature is encrypted before it touches disk. Your clients' tax documents, contracts, and personal data are unreadable without the decryption key.
All data moving between your clients' browsers and Portico is encrypted. Every form submission, file upload, and API call is protected in transit — no exceptions.
Every action — form submission, file upload, signature, approval, status change — is logged with a timestamp and cryptographically linked to the previous entry using SHA-256 hashing. If anyone modifies or deletes a record, the chain breaks and the tampering is immediately detectable. Exportable as CSV.
Team owners control who can view, edit, or manage onboardings. Invite team members with scoped permissions — no one gets access they do not need.
Every uploaded file is checked for type and size before it's stored. Files are validated on our servers, not in the browser, so restrictions cannot be bypassed.
Clients access onboardings via single-use magic links — no passwords to leak, no accounts to breach. Each link works once and expires after use.
Encrypted from the first document. Start free, no credit card required.
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