FAQ
Is Your Apparel ERP Data Secure — and Who Has Access to It?
Short answer: Your data is yours. Ai2000 runs on modern cloud infrastructure with data encrypted in transit and at rest, role-based access controls that limit what each user can see, automatic updates and built-in disaster recovery. Access inside your business is controlled by you; access on our side is limited to support work you request.
The four questions to ask about ERP security
- Is data encrypted in transit and at rest? Both, not one. Encryption in transit protects the connection; encryption at rest protects the stored database.
- How granular are permissions? Costing, margins, vendor pricing and payroll-adjacent financial data should be visible by role, not by default.
- What happens if infrastructure fails? Cloud deployment should include backup and disaster recovery you do not have to operate yourself.
- Who at the vendor can see my data, and when? The right answer is: support staff, for the issue you raised, under access controls — not open-ended.
Why cloud is usually safer than the server in your warehouse
On-premise ERP concentrates risk on hardware nobody has time to patch. Cloud deployment means automatic software updates, enterprise-grade infrastructure security and built-in disaster recovery with no servers to maintain. The practical security upgrade for most mid-market brands is not a new firewall — it is getting off an unpatched box in a stockroom.
Access control in an apparel business
| Role | Typically should see | Typically should not |
|---|---|---|
| Warehouse / pick-pack | Orders, inventory, bins, shipping | Landed cost, margins, AR aging |
| Customer service | Customer orders, availability, tracking | Vendor pricing, GL |
| Production / sourcing | BOMs, tech packs, POs, factory costs | Customer-level profitability |
| Finance | GL, AP/AR, multi-currency, margins | — |
| Sales rep | Their accounts and orders | Other reps' accounts, company-wide costing |
Governance practices we recommend
- Review user roles every season — leavers and role changes are the most common access gap.
- Grant the minimum permission that lets someone do their job, then widen on request.
- Keep exports controlled: the biggest ERP data leak in most companies is a spreadsheet.
- Document who owns approvals for pricing, credit and vendor changes inside the system.
Further reading and sources
- NIST Cybersecurity Framework — the standard reference for identifying, protecting, detecting, responding and recovering.
- AICPA — SOC 2, the reporting framework buyers commonly ask software vendors about.
- California Attorney General — CCPA and European Commission — data protection for consumer data obligations relevant to DTC brands.
Related questions
Can we export our own data? Yes — it is your data, available through reporting and analytics.
Is Ai2000 cloud-based? Yes, with encryption in transit and at rest and role-based access controls.
See your ERP fit and ask us anything about how your data is handled.
See Your ERP Fit