In today’s digital world there’s hardly anyone who does not know or talk about data privacy or security and only those from the IT industry would understand ‘encryption.’ So, we thought why not dig little deep and gain a better understanding of encryption from a layman’s perspective. Any business that relies on data, either by producing, aggregating, or consuming, has the responsibility of protecting the data against unauthorized access. This is done for data privacy and security, business sustainability, and meeting regulatory compliance as it has become one of the leading business requirements.
To begin with we need to understand that it is the most important tool for data privacy and security. Encryption in its basic form conceals information by altering it in a way that it becomes indecipherable to unauthorized users. It has a larger role in security and is a fundamental part of a wide range of technologies, for instance Virtual Private Network (VPN), secure communications, and web security.
Defining Encryption:
In simple words we can say that it is the process of encoding data so that only those for whom it is intended can access and read it, is called encryption. This is used to ensure the privacy of data, such as the text of e-mails and the files on your computer. By encrypting information, it keeps the information hidden from anyone for whom it was not intended, such as hackers. This is also used with electronic transactions to ensure that no one can steal information.
Types of Encryptions:
Symmetric and asymmetric encryption are two types of encryptions in widespread use today. Symmetric encryption algorithms use the same key for both encryption and decryption. In this case the sender encrypts the data and shares the key with intended recipients so that they can decrypt the data. It is generally faster and easier to implement and is commonly used for encrypting data in bulk.
Asymmetric encryption on the other hand uses two distinct keys: a public key and a private key. The public key is used for encryption, and it is available publicly. The private key, which is used for decryption, is kept secure and is available only to the key owner. Asymmetric encryption gives a fair bit of flexibility, as the public key can be easily shared. However, it requires more computing resources compared to symmetric encryption.
The Popular Encryption Methods:
AES (Advanced Encryption Standard)
It is one of the most secure encryptions and is used by governments and security organizations as well as everyday businesses for classified communications. AES uses “symmetric” key encryption. The receiver of the data will need a key to decode it. AES is different from other encryption types as it encrypts data in a single block, instead of individual bits. The block sizes determine the name for each kind of AES encrypted data, for example AES-128 encrypts blocks of a 128-bit size or the AES-192 for blocks of a 192-bit size. Most of the data tools in the market today use AES encryption and is the most widely accepted and secure encryption method for the price.
RSA (Rivest-Shamir-Adleman)
The other popular encryption standard is RSA named after its inventors Ron Rivest, Adi Shamir, and Leonard Adelman; it is widely used for data that is sent online. It relies on a public key to encrypt the data. The receiver of the data will have their own private key to decode the messages. It’s has proved to be a secure way to send information to people who may not know each other and want to communicate without compromising their personal data. It is used to verify a digital signature and ensure that the person they are communicating with is really the one with whom they want to communicate. The only drawback is that it takes a long time to encrypt and isn’t practical for numerous or large files.
Why Encryption Matters in Businesses
Implementing encryption can help organizations strengthen their privacy controls, especially as they start offering new digital customer experiences. For example, if a company builds an end-user application, it should make sure to encrypt data both in transit and at rest. This way, organizations can defend against attacks like man-in-the-middle, where bad actors use public internet access to steal data. If data is encrypted at rest, then a data breach which exfiltrates the data won't be as damaging since the attackers won't be able to read or make use of the stolen information.
For Security
Cybercriminals target businesses by going after the low-hanging fruit or the less secured. If the data is not encrypted, the business will be vulnerable to data loss but if it is then the hackers will not be able to understand it even if they gain access to it.
For Privacy
By end-to-end encryption we protect communications from being read or altered while in transit. This way, even if an attacker manages to intercept communications, they won't be able to understand or change them. This is important for preventing corporate espionage and social engineering.
For Data Integrity
Encryption is important because it guarantees that the data hasn't been changed during transit. This allows the recipient to be confident about the data's authenticity.
To Be Compliant
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), PCI-DSS, and the GDPR are a few examples of regulatory compliances that mandate encryption, so to be reliable and grow in the global market, industries or businesses need to meet the standards and government regulations which require them to encrypt their customer data.
Concluding words…
Final words with hope that this bit was able to give, if not an in-depth but some understanding about encryption and its importance for data privacy and security. Encryption is a powerful and important tool for data privacy and security compliance. It is a vital tool for protecting sensitive information against unauthorized access, particularly in the context of data privacy laws like the GDPR.
If you are looking for a more comprehensive data security program, our team of experts at Levantine can help you find the right solution to protect your organization and its sensitive data. We hope you've enjoyed this blog post and found it useful!
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