Secure Scanning Environment

What to observe in order to set up a secure scanning

environment with Open Text Enterprise Scan
Claudia Traving, Open Text SAP Solutions Group
October 2010

Introduction
Scanning paper documents, storing it for long-term preservation and using the digitalized
content to speed up business processes is best practice for more process speed and efficiency
for enterprises around the world. Several of these business processes are regulated by
legislation, for example processing documents relevant for taxation like invoices.
One important principle is guiding the digitalization of such paper document: The electronic
representation of a document must be identical to the original and must be stored in an
unalterable way. This means that the electronic document must be consistent with the original in
a way that is accepted by authorities like tax authorities or before court.
For scanned paper document it means that the electronic documents needs to visually conform
to the paper document. Some legislation request that this is confirmed by a person applying a
personalized digital signature to the electronic document. The digital signature guarantees that
the electronic document cannot be tampered without being detected and authenticate the
person that confirmed the visual conformance with the original. This is specifically important if
the paper shell be disposed after scanning.
This paper describes how to set up a scanning environment with Open Text Imaging Enterprise
Scan, Open Text Document Pipeline and Open Text Archive Server with all due diligence to
fulfill the strict requirements of legislation regarding conformity of electronic documents with the
scanned original.

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Scanning Process Overview

The scanning with digital signature involves the following major components which together form the
Scan Station:
1. Scanner, connected to Scan PC via standard interfaces (ISIS or VRS)
Physical digitalization of paper and passing the resulting images to Enterprise Scan.
2. Enterprise Scan, Open Text scanning software, deployed on the Scan PC
Controls the scanner and provides the user interface for visual inspection of the images, with
possibilities to improve image quality and correct scanning errors.
3. Document Pipeline, Open Text software deployed on the Scan PC or on a remote server
Transports the image file to the Archive Server and sends the document linkage information
to the leading application (e.g. SAP or TCP). Transport paths are secured by checksums and
use of SSL. Optionally the TIFF image can be converted to PDF. A timestamp can be added
to the image, which is archived together with the document.

These three components together cover the end-to-end process of scanning and digitalizing the
paper, quality assurance of scanned image, optionally applying a timestamp and sending it to the
Archive Server.
In order to ensure that the images are not tampered during this process, these three components
need to be installed in a secure environment.

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Secure Scanning Environment

During the scanning process, the images that need to be secured are represented in different form:
Paper documents during the preparation of the documents for scanning until physical
scanning itself
Image files in the memory of the scan PC and on the persistent Enterprise Scan document
stack of the scan PC before being archived, i.e. sent to the Document Pipeline
Image files resp. PDF files on the file system of the Document Pipeline
To secure the document during the entire scanning process the following rules should be observed:
Admission Access Control
The room where the scanning takes place should be secured with physical access control. Only
authorized employees should be able to enter the room where the documents are prepared for
scanning, scanned and processed. This controls at the same time the physical access to the scan PC
and its file system where documents pass through before being sent to the Archive Server.
Scan PC User Control
Only selected scan personnel should get logins to the scan PC. The rights of these users should be
limited to the necessary minimum. Enterprise Scan relies on the Windows user authentication.
Administration right should be granted only very selectively and observing a four-eyes principle for
administration of the scan PC is recommended.
Scan PC File System Control
The file system of the scan PC should be secured with access restrictions specifically for the areas of
the Enterprise Scan document stack and the Document Pipeline directories in case the Document
Pipeline is deployed on the Scan PC. Only Enterprise Scan and thus the scan personnel need to have
write access permissions to these file system areas.
It is recommend to scan only as many documents as can be archived in the ongoing session of
Enterprise Scan. This will prevent from documents staying in the document stack between scan
sessions. If a personalized digital signature is used (see below) this is necessary to ensure that the
scan operator only signs documents scanned by himself.
Scan Profile Control
It is recommended to configure the appropriate scan profile in the Archive Server administration and
to assign only the necessary profiles with the appropriate archiving mode and the secured pipeline
host to the respective scan client.
Document Correction with Enterprise Scan
Enterprise Scan provides functionalities to correct the document structure and improve the quality of
scanned images via correction functions such as: deskew, despeckle, smooth, rotate, sort, separate,
and join document pages, change index or homogenize colours. Users can not change the content
(e.g. change figures on an invoice) in images scanned with Enterprise Scan unless an external
imaging library is integrated via scripting into Enterprise Scan.
rd

Immediate Personalized Digital Signature (with 3 Party Software)

In case a personalized digital signature is needed, it should be applied after the Enterprise Scan user
has inspected the document, corrected scanning errors (see above) and acknowledged the
acceptance of the scanned image as to be visually conform with the original. With a single click the
document is then sent to the appropriate Document Pipeline using the fitting scan profile and without

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rd

further user interaction. There the personalized digitally signature is created by a 3 party software
integrated in the Document Pipeline (project), applied to the document and the signed document is
passed on to the Archive Server.
Document Pipeline File System Control
The file system used by the Document Pipeline should be secured with access restrictions. If the
Document Pipeline is deployed on the scan PC, this is a specific directory of the file system of the
scan PC. As an alternative the Document Pipeline can also be installed as Remote Document
Pipeline, for example on the Archive Server which typically provides a secure environment.
Secure Timestamp in the Document Pipeline
If an additional level of security is required to ensure data integrity of documents, timestamp
signatures can be used. A timestamp is a signed datagram containing the document's hash value, the
current time and date, and additional information. The Archive Server supports interfaces to external,
certified timestamp service providers like timeproof and Authentidate. Timestamps ensure that
document components can no longer be modified unnoticed after they have been archived. When tax
auditors examine a document several years later, the company can prove that it was saved at a
certain time and hasnt been changed since. The Document Pipeline can be configured to apply a
timestamp to the document before sending it on to the Archive Server.
Secure Communication
The communication between Enterprise Scan, the Document Pipeline, the Open Text Archive Server
and the SAP system can be secured via the usage of SSL respectively HTTPS and checksums. By
enforcing SSL, authorized and encrypted access to all or individual logical archives can be ensured.
Enterprise Scan generates checksums for all scanned documents and passes them on to the Archive
Server. The Archive Server verifies the checksums and reports errors.
Secure Archiving on Secure Storage
Generally, Archive Server archives documents on non-changeable media with WORM feature. These
can only be written once, providing excellent security against accidental as well as intentional deletion
or alteration.
Secure Archiving with ArchiSig Timestamps
With the ArchiSig concept, the Archive Server also supports the renewal of timestamps and digital
signatures. This is necessary as the value of digitally signed documents as legal evidence decreases
over the course of time as the employed cryptographic algorithms and the keys lose their security
qualification over time. It also may not be guaranteed that the directories and documents needed for
the verification of certificates are available for 30 years or more. Open Text Archive Server supports
the ArchiSig concept. An ArchiSig-generated timestamp with renewal is valid for an unlimited period of
time.
Secure Retrieval
Upon retrieving a document with timestamp, the Archive Server can automatically validate the
timestamp upon read requests for the document. In case the timestamp is invalid the Archive Server
can be configured to take appropriate action like denying the read request or informing the
administrator.
Secure Viewing
Timestamps of documents can also be interactively verified by the user when documents are
displayed in the Imaging Viewers (Windows, Java, Web). The Imaging Web Viewer with PDF
Extensions also supports verification of digital signatures embedded in PDF documents.

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About Open Text

Open Text is a leader in Enterprise Content Management (ECM). With two
decades of experience helping organizations overcome the challenges
associated with managing and gaining the true value of their business content,
Open Text stands unmatched in the market.
Together with our customers and partners, we are truly The Content Experts,
supporting 46,000 organizations and millions of users in 114 countries around the
globe. We know how organizations work. We have a keen understanding of how
content flows throughout an enterprise, and of the business challenges that
organizations face today.
It is this knowledge that gives us our unique ability to develop the richest array of
tailored content management applications and solutions in the industry. Our
unique and collaborative approach helps us provide guidance so that our
customers can effectively address business challenges and leverage content to
drive growth, mitigate risk, increase brand equity, automate processes, manage
compliance, and generate competitive advantage. Organizations can trust the
management of their vital business content to Open Text, The Content Experts.

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