Large companies, added Kauffman, are likely to negotiate rates of less than 10 cents per minute anyway, so direct dialing makes even more sense. The real savings, they said, occur when faxes are sent from foreign countries to those with competitive telecommunications markets, such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and Sweden. Administrators may also be wary of security issues, but concerns appear to be exaggerated. Those lines can be wire tapped pretty easily, but if you digitize the fax before sending it over the Internet, you can encrypt it and authenticate between servers to prevent spoofing. Regardless of the level of security, most faxes are less than top secret, said Kauffman.
Nobody plans a coup of a dictator through fax.
Transmission speed may also make some administrators shy a way from the technology. Because both phone and computer networks are involved, documents are not sent in real time. There are potential delays as you have with E-mail. The upshot for administrators, it seems, is to carefully consider their options before jumping into Internet faxing. It's something to watch.