Contal Case Study: security, data protection, and collaboration in accounting management with Optiwork

TL;DR

Contal is an accounting management firm with over 20 years in the market that needed file traceability and data protection compliance
The core challenge was controlling who accesses, edits, and shares client documents, with auditable records
With Optiwork, Contal gained granular permission control, automatic versioning, and complete audit logging of every file action
Centralizing tools into a single platform eliminated the need to switch between systems throughout the day

With over 20 years of experience, Contal is a reference in the accounting management market. Founded by Carlos Ludwig and his partners, the company has always prioritized data protection and efficiency in its internal processes.

When Brazil’s General Data Protection Law (LGPD) came into force, Contal intensified the search for a solution that would guarantee security, traceability, and real control over its clients’ data.

The challenge: data protection, remote access, and centralization

Accounting firms deal daily with highly sensitive client information. Tax, financial, payroll, and filing data require strict control over who accesses what, when, and what is done with that information.

Beyond data protection compliance, Contal needed a system that allowed secure remote access to files, without depending on physical infrastructure or VPN. Carlos Ludwig, Director and Partner at Contal, explains the context:

“Since the start of the LGPD, we’ve been very concerned with data security. We needed an online system that would let us access files from anywhere, including from inside our clients’ offices.”

The challenge wasn’t only security. Contal also wanted to centralize email, communication, projects, and documentation into a single platform, eliminating constant switching between different tools throughout the team’s day.

The solution

After evaluating the market, Contal chose Optiwork. The decision was based on the combination of security, traceability, and breadth of features in a single platform.

“We didn’t find in the market what we ended up finding in Optiwork. It’s a complete tool, ranging from email and calendar management to the ability to make recorded video calls, plus the internal social network and the projects and papers modules.” — Carlos Ludwig, Director and Partner at Contal

The Contal team went through full training on the platform’s features, conducted by the Optiwork team. Data migration and adoption of the new tool happened without operational interruption.

What changed in practice

Access control and full traceability

The first gain felt was granular control over who accesses what. Contal began creating users with different permission levels: administrators with general access and users with restricted access to the files defined for each profile.

Every action on any file is logged. Who accessed it, when, and what they did. This record is what the LGPD requires, and Contal can now demonstrate it with concrete evidence:

“The system has substantial robustness, because it creates admin users with access to general data and user-level accounts with restricted access to the files we define. We have full traceability of what each user accesses, when they access it, and what they do with the files.” — Carlos Ludwig

Automatic document versioning

Contal works with documents that go through multiple revisions over time. With Optiwork’s automatic versioning, any previous version of a file can be recovered without depending on manual copies or backup processes.

“One of the main advantages we noticed was versioning. We work with the platform collaboratively, and if I need to go back to a previous version, I have that option.” — Carlos Ludwig

Documents shared with clients are now protected by login and password, ensuring that only the right people access each file. This solves a common gap in accounting firms: the difficulty of controlling access to documents sent externally.

Centralized workflow

With email, chat, video conferencing, projects, and documentation in a single platform, the Contal team stopped switching between systems throughout the day. The productivity gain was direct:

“Centralizing activities in a single tool produces a major productivity gain. We make it so people aren’t constantly switching screens.” — Carlos Ludwig

Result

Optiwork became Contal’s main work platform. The company operates with auditable data security, documented LGPD compliance, real-time collaboration, and a single environment for all day-to-day tools.

“We’re very satisfied with the system. We see it as a highly innovative tool. We didn’t find in the market what we ended up finding in Optiwork.” — Carlos Ludwig

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Frequently asked questions

Q: Is Optiwork suitable for accounting firms? A: Yes. Optiwork offers granular permissions by user and folder, full traceability of access and actions on files, automatic versioning, and CSV export of audit reports for data protection compliance. These features are especially relevant for firms that handle clients’ tax and financial data.

Q: How does Optiwork help with data protection compliance? A: Optiwork logs every file action with date, time, user, and device. You can export audit reports as CSV, set data retention policies, control who can download each document, and revoke access immediately when needed. These controls directly meet what articles 37 and 46 of the LGPD require for logging and protecting personal data.

Q: Can external clients be given access without seeing other documents? A: Yes. Optiwork lets you create share links protected by login and password, with permissions specific to each folder or file. The external client only accesses what was released to them, and the access is recorded in the audit log.

Q: How does migration to Optiwork work? A: Optiwork has a team specialized in migrations that runs the entire process together with the company: data export, folder structure setup, file migration, and permission configuration. The customer validates the plan before execution. Contal went through this process with no operational interruption.

Q: Is Optiwork support available in English? A: Yes. Support is provided in English, Portuguese, and Spanish, via chat and email, with an SLA of up to 5 minutes during business hours, by Optiwork’s internal team.