Online Fax Services FAQ

Yes, you can. One of the greatest advantages of using online faxing is the option to send and receive fax messages on the go via apps that are available for iOS and Android users. These applications are always free to download and are usually more simplified versions of their desktop browser counterparts, but still keep most of or, in some cases, all available features provided by the chosen faxing service.

And although many people think that a faxing app only complements the online faxing account – and, to be honest, it should indeed be considered as nothing more than a virtual extension in certain cases – they often come with features that are actually not present in any desktop faxing manager

The advantages of faxing on the go

One such feature is push notifications that, when compared to regular email messages, are capable of immediately alerting users of when a new fax is waiting to be read. Another important feature is that the application provides more flexibility when it comes to attaching files to a fax message. This means there are options to add attachments directly from other apps like Dropbox, Google Drive and the like.

Such faxing service apps are also pretty handy since they allow for enhanced contact lists. Not only will the application import all information saved to an account in exactly the same way that it appears in the online version, but it also creates a separate tab where the phone’s own contact list will appear.

Limitations

Despite providing all features necessary for basic faxing and more, there are certain occasions when it’s better to opt for the desktop browser fax manager than the app itself. For example, one issue is that unless the faxing app is used on a tablet or a phone with a bigger screen, creating and viewing a fax may be a bit uncomfortable. Not to mention that making modifications on any attached documents, such as adding a digital signature, is virtually impossible when performed from a smartphone.

The short answer is yes, you can – although it depends highly on what kind of service you prefer.

Because when it comes to free of charge online faxing, there are some major differences between the risk-free trials of paid online fax services and a truly free faxing solution.

Free trials of paid online fax services

The easiest way to enjoy all of the benefits of online faxing is to make use of the professional approach, as in testing a paid online fax service. Nowadays the most popular – and in most cases only – option for doing this is by subscribing to a faxing company’s paid plan and then cancelling the service within a given amount of time, which is usually 30 days. Although this only gives you a small taste of how good the chosen faxing service is, it’s the best way to try out all available features without risk – thanks to the money back guarantee – and, most importantly, without any major limitations.

In certain cases, some paid faxing services provide free forever plans for those who’d rather have an entirely free service instead of having access to the full service for a limited time. However, these free services are often extremely limited when it comes to available features, particularly in regards to the amount of incoming and outbound faxes allowed, which is usually reduced to only a few pages each month. Some of these free plans even go further with their limits by completely eliminating the possibility of inbound faxing from the feature set.

Free online faxing solutions

Although paid online faxing services do indeed make life easier, they are intended for those who are regularly in need of faxing. For occasional fax users it is better to opt for a free online faxing solution.

The good news is that most of these services only require you to provide the necessary email addresses, names, the receiver’s fax number and any attachments to send a fax. Additionally, these services usually allow the attachment of the most important file types associated with faxing, such as PDFs, JPGs and Microsoft Word files. Speaking of Word, all of the best-known Office programs have a built-in faxing tool by default, with which you can send outbound faxes without restriction.

There is a very good reason to mention Microsoft here, since there are plenty of catches when it comes to free online fax services. The most noticeable is that free online faxing services can only send faxes, meaning that outbound faxes are out of the question to begin with. Another limitation comes in the form of fax pages: most free online fax services don’t allow faxes to have more than four pages, including the cover page.

But there are even bigger problems that should also be considered. Free online services often limit the number of faxes that can be sent each day, while many solutions put an unwanted watermark on the cover pages. And, unlike paid faxing service providers that encrypt messages going in and out by default, there is no guarantee that a free online faxing tool would use the same level of encryption as well.

Just like traditional faxing where a single message can be broadcast to multiple destinations at once, online faxing is also capable of sending one fax in bulk.

In fact, the process itself is as simple as if you were sending the message to just one recipient. There are no major restrictions regarding fax broadcasting over the internet.

The process

Sending a fax to multiple parties is ridiculously easy, and it can be done with just a few clicks. The fax composing tools of online faxing managers are programmed in such a way that they provide space for adding more than one recipient, regardless of whether those addressees are pulled from the program’s contact list or are added manually.

The process can also be performed in an ordinary email client that can send the same message to multiple addresses by default, in which case you will need to enter each fax number that the fax will be sent to in the recipient field, using the [email protected] format. Note, however, that in this case fax numbers have to be added manually and one by one each time this email-to-fax service is used, unless these numbers are saved into your email client’s contact list.

Limitations

The good news is that simultaneous faxing is virtually unlimited with online faxing services and it’s a feature that is provided for all users by default in any subscription plan, however that doesn’t mean that you can send complete novels to hundreds of people. No matter which service is being used, the number of recipients for a fax is always limited; in eFax‘s case, for instance, that number is 50. In addition to that, there are restrictions regarding the fax message itself, too; depending on the service provider fax messages themselves could be limited in the number of attachments, the number of pages in total, or the total amount of data that one message can contain.

Proper fax broadcasting

Although there are no strict rules on how the sender should act when broadcasting a fax message, if there is one thing that is a straight no-no for everyone then it is spamming. In fact, sending a fax to someone who either hasn’t established a business relationship with the company in question or has since opted to no longer receive any more messages is illegal and could result in a penalty of up to $1,500 per violation – especially if the sender was willfully or knowingly breaking the law. However, even accidental fax transmissions could end in a $500 fine unless the recipient has previously entered into a business relationship with the sender.

But even if the necessary permissions are obtained from each receiver, common courtesy requires that you to first tell them that they are about to receive a message via fax – particularly in cases where confidential documents are involved. In this regard, a simple email is enough, unless the fax message is simply an advertisement, in which case recipients don’t need to be notified prior to sending.

Similar to transferring a landline phone number, fax numbers can also be ported from one provider to another. However, even if there are very few cases where a number porting request is declined, taking your existing number over to a new provider is a lengthy process with many steps that must be carried out carefully in order to ensure that you can start enjoying the benefits of online faxing with your old number.

Step 1: Creating the new account

Since the porting of old fax numbers can take a significant amount of time, online faxing services require users to keep their existing fax subscriptions until the porting process is over. This means that regardless of whether number porting can be requested during the initial signup or only once the new account is created, newcomers will always receive a new fax number to be able to used temporarily while the service transfers the number over.

Step 2: Checking eligibility

Unless it’s forbidden by contractual obligation, a fax number should always be eligible for porting from one provider to another without any major restrictions. However, certain providers may still claim ownership of fax numbers, only allowing them to be ported out if the client pays a porting fee.

Simply put, always check that your fax number can be ported out to begin with and, if so, whether an extra fee is required.

Step 3: Filing a number porting request

Once all existing debts have been paid to the previous service provider and the fax number is made available for transferring, it’s time to file the number porting request. The process of filling out the number transferring request form can be quite a challenge as you have to provide all of the following:

• Personal or business data, including name, address, and a valid phone number.
• The address at which your old service was registered.
• The name of your previous faxing service provider and the account number that identifies you in company’s system (typically found on your bills).
• A copy of a fax bill no older than 30 days.

Admittedly, providing such an amount of data may seem excessive, but this is the only way to ensure that the new faxing service provider can perform the number transferring process without issue.

Step 4: Using the new service

As already mentioned, the number porting process can be quite lengthy, lasting between 15 and 30 business days. However, if the number transferring request is filled out correctly with all the necessary information required by the new service provider then the process can be sped up significantly.

That doesn’t mean that you can’t use your brand new online faxing account, though. In fact, all that it takes is to forward the faxes from the old number to the new, temporary one while your number porting request is processed and continue to do so until the confirmation of a successful number transferring arrives. And once that’s out of the way you can cancel the old service and start enjoying all the benefits of the new online faxing service.

The working principle of online faxing is extremely simple and sometimes it doesn’t even require the possession of a fax number or a subscription to a suitable service provider – although it’s important to note that free online fax services are not without flaws. What online faxing does require, however, is a device that connects to the internet – and the online fax service’s cloud servers, to be more precise – either via cable, mobile data, or Wi-Fi. In fact, it is these servers that are the heart of online faxing as they convert the signals into the right format in order to make sure that the fax message arrives safely to its destination.

Sending and receiving faxes over the internet

This transition from internet data to phone signals and vice versa is extremely smooth: when you send a fax message either through the fax manager or via an email account, the data travels to the service provider’s cloud servers where the conversion (to TIFF format) takes place. After that the message continues its journey through plain old telephone cables until it arrives at its proper destination.

The process is basically the same the other way around, too – the phone signal is turned into internet data – but with a minor difference; the moment the fax message arrives at the online account the system sends out an email as well, containing the entire fax message and the sender’s document in the form of a PDF file. At the same time the fax manager’s mobile version also notifies the user about the arrival of a new fax, but does so via convenient push notifications.

Cables and machinery

The only requirements for paid online faxing is a fax number and a computer or mobile device for it to properly work. In simpler words, you can say goodbye to those big faxing machines with empty ink cartridges, jamming papers and busy signals.

Speaking of which, with an online faxing service there is no such thing as a ‘busy signal’. Since faxes travel through internet cables and online faxing service providers operate with multiple servers at the same time all messages arrive in a timely manner regardless of what kind of system the receiver has.

Making the big move

Similar to switching from a traditional phone service to VoIP, dedicated faxing lines can also be ditched in favor of online equivalents. And just as a cloud phone system would, there is the option to bring the fax number over from the old provider to the new one.

In the case of number porting, however, the number has to go through a process that could last up to two or three weeks, during which a temporary fax number is assigned to you. And also just like with phone number porting, it’s highly recommended to stay with the previous service provider during the time of transition. But whereas keeping the regular phone line is basically a must to maintain a connection to a 911 service and to ensure proper working functionality of home security and medical alert systems, cancelling the traditional, phone line-based faxing service is something that can be done without remorse.

Let us answer the question with another question: have you ever cursed over a fax machine that ran out of ink or paper? Have you had to wait impatiently to have your message sent just because someone from the office occupied the only available fax line? Or have you sent or received a fax that ended up being illegible due to poor quality? If any of the answers to these are ‘yes’, then you shouldn’t be surprised to know that online faxing wins over traditional faxing methods with a KO when it comes to overall reliability.

Why online faxing is reliable

Always up and running

When a traditional phone line – through which faxes are transmitted – is unavailable for one reason or another, there is nothing that can be done aside from waiting patiently for things to get resolved.

Online faxing services, however, have a 99%-100% uptime thanks to the fact that they don’t rely solely on just simple internet cables, but on Wi-Fi and mobile internet as well. This means that unless every method of accessing the internet is down or the ISP is failing to provide its service, the online faxing manager can be accessed at anytime from anywhere with ease.

The hardware

Having the right hardware is crucial for faxing, especially where the traditional approach is concerned. However, the fax machine has to be in top shape, because the moment it cannot be used for some reason – whether that’s a hardware malfunction, the lack of ink and paper or simply the line being occupied at that point in time – there is no way that messages can be transmitted properly.

Online faxing, on the other hand, eliminates this problem by removing fax machines from the equation and reduces the necessary equipment to just a computer or smart device that is connected to the internet, through which the online fax manager can be found. But what this really means is that, if the device is down, it can be replaced by another device that is capable of accessing the online faxing account and work can continue undisturbed.

Instant confirmation

Thankfully online faxing services provide a similar means of confirming or denying the successful transmission of a sent fax just as old fax machines did. However, they do so in a much more intelligent manner: firstly, the message is sent automatically to the online faxing manager and to the email addresses of any users of the account. Secondly, since the confirmation also appears as an email message, there is no need to waste ink and paper. And lastly, since the confirmation doesn’t need to be printed, risks of losing it, unwanted parties gaining access to it, or it getting damaged by accident are reduced to zero.

Legality

Even though nobody questions the authenticity of faxes sent over copper wires, the same rules apply to online faxing as well. In simpler words, any document attached to an online fax message should be considered an authentic copy, especially in cases where a digital signature is also involved.

Additionally, the fact that these documents are sent from a password-protected online account makes most online faxing services HIPAA-compliant. This means that these services are confirmed to be hack-proof and, therefore, can transmit documents containing confidential data as well.

The short answer is yes, online faxing is completely safe and a secure way of communicating.

Sending and receiving faxes online is better than doing the same using the traditional combination of faxing machines and plain landline cables. One of the reasons why you are better off with online faxing should be quite obvious, since when a document arrives at a fax machine, it prints the message for anyone to take – a method that could easily lead to the message getting into the hands of unauthorized people. Online faxes, however, are never printed by default, always appearing in the online faxing manager first, which is password protected and therefore cannot be accessed by just anyone but only the account user.

The protection of online faxes

Online faxing managers are protected by passwords and 256-bit encryption, meaning that aside from those who are given permission to view or send faxes from within the account nobody – not even the employees of the chosen faxing service – will be able to see your messages.

This type of protection works outside of the online faxing environment as well. For example, all of j2 Global’s faxing services (eFax, MetroFax and MyFax) have features that allow for faxing via email, which in addition to being more convenient for the user only allows faxes to be sent from a plain email account from the email addresses of those that have been added to the faxing account.

As for the messages themselves, the good news is that faxes stay fully encrypted even when in transit over the internet, up until the moment that the receiver opens them. This ensures that hackers cannot intercept messages, but even if they do they won’t be able to decipher them thanks to the applied encryption.

Note, however, that your messages are only protected from one endpoint to the other so long as they are opened within the safe environment of the faxing service. In other words, stick to opening and creating the messages within the account manager or in the online faxing service’s dedicated smartphone application instead of doing so via an email account. Although if this email account has extra protection – like two-factor authentication – then it is safe to use for faxing purposes, too.

Online faxing with HIPAA-compliance

In cases where the faxing solution has to deal with electronic protected health information (ePHI), it must comply with the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

What this means is that the transmission between the sender and the receiver must be secure and fully protected at all times, otherwise the faxing solutions is not HIPAA-compliant.

Due to the strict requirements of the law not all online faxing services provide the necessary measures to earn the title of being HIPAA-compliant. However, certain solutions like Sfax, SRFax and RingCentral Fax meet these requirements by default. eFax is also HIPAA-compliant – which is j2 Global’s flagship product – and adds electronic signatures into the mix, too, but only if the business opts for the Corporate subscription plan that operates with custom prices.