Data comes in many forms—numbers, images, creations like logos or draft plans, videos, words, databases, and more. We send and retrieve it constantly. Data encryption protects information in storage, transit, and retrieval from being accessed by unauthorized users and therefore is a powerful tool in a cybersecurity arsenal. How does it work? How do small businesses use data encryption to protect their intellectual property?
Historically data was sent in clear text format. Passwords were one of the first to be kept in encrypted format. As time went on and processing power increased, it made sense to encrypt all data. Note that compression is often used hand-in-hand with encryption. Compression is used to make a file smaller in order to fit on storage devices and to make data transmission faster.
Data encryption is basically a two-part process: the scramble (encryption) and the unscramble (decryption). Mixing data into an unintelligible scramble prevents an unauthorized user from accessing and interpreting the data. An authorized person (or computer) with the decrypt key, however, will be able to retrieve it and comprehend it. Encrypted data is accessed constantly: Anytime a person accesses their bank online, uses Google Docs, or clicks a link to a website with “https:” in the URL, they are utilizing encryption. While there is a lot to read about the topic we will present the two main ways to encrypt data and describe the components to access such data.
Symmetric encryption is the encryption and decryption of data using a secret symmetric key that is shared by all the parties in the transaction.
Asymmetric encryption (public key encryption – PKE) utilizes two different keys to encrypt and decrypt data. Anyone can use the public key to encrypt the data but only the holders of the corresponding private key can decrypt the data.
Layered into the above are a host of other functions and other various algorithms for this security process. For more detailed information about the different types of encryption, see this article at IBM.
Common Data Encryption Solutions
SMB specializes in cybersecurity for small businesses. “Data encryption is a best practice in the IT work we do, ” says our own Jon Conant, CEO and CIO of SMB Support Corporation. While each client has customized solutions, common data encryption features for SMB Managed IT projects include several or all of the following:
Secure Email: Common in law firms, companies with government contracts, and pharmaceutical companies, secure email is a multi-step process for transmitting very sensitive data. Upon receipt of such a stub email, a recipient clicks on a link. Next, they acknowledge their identity, then the email is decrypted and accessed.
Cloud Encryption: There should be no sensitive data that isn’t encrypted on the web. We use a program called C2 Storage to access active data from the Cloud. This is one of our most popular encryption features.
Bitlocker: Some clients have their entire hard drives encrypted. The password needs to be closely guarded. If the key is lost, there is no ability to access the hard drive.
Router and VPN Tunneling: This combination makes it very secure for staff to remotely log into a company’s network for off-site work.
With the nearly constant onslaught of cybersecurity attacks, data encryption is one of the most powerful tools to keep a company’s intellectual property safe and secure. Contact us to set up a consultation to discuss your data encryption and other cybersecurity needs!
