As organizations across the world adopt IT infrastructure to conduct their operations, they keep becoming more and more data centred. What this means is that the amount of data they use rises exponentially. This includes the organizations’ own transactional data and their users’ data collected over the span of years. Protecting these huge chunks of data becomes a challenge, and companies invest heavily in data security measures.
The term data security refers to the protective measures undertaken to ¬¬control unauthorized access to computers, websites, databases, etc. This helps organizations protect their own and their users’ data from breach by hackers, accidental deletion or data loss. Data security involves implementing methods that protect the data throughout its lifecycle from corruption.
Below are a few methods, widely used for data security by most organizations around the world.
Backup
Backup refers to the method of creating a copy of files, which are to be used when the data is lost. Backups can be created both internally or on cloud storage. Although backup is not exactly a security measure per se, it is an essential step in making the data secure.
Encryption
Encryption involves converting data into packets of information via code. These packets can only be decoded using the software in order for the user to view the information. This helps prevent a breach of data by unauthorized users while transferring.
Encryption is not limited to transferring; it is also widely implemented on data stored in drives or data centres. Therefore, even if someone gains access to the drives, they will not be able to extract the information unless the software key is used to decode it.
Authentication
Authentication is the simplest and most common data security measure. It involves the use of passwords or codes to access certain information. It also enables organizations to limit the user’s access only to particular data. This means, not all users can access all of the data stored in a system.
More advanced means of authentication use biometric verification. Many organizations also use two-factor authentication to help their users secure themselves from breaches.
Erasure
This measure involves completely removing the data that is no longer in use. This will prevent an unauthorized user from recovering and accessing the data in future.
Conslusion
If you are a business owner, it is highly likely that you use IT applications for at least one of your operations if not more or all. As the organization grows, their data and its security keep getting more and more important. Any breaches of data could prove detrimental in terms of financial losses or towards brand equity.
This is why it has become essential for businesses of all kinds to have data security measures in place. Use of a reliable data management service is also a key to data security. Whether you choose internal or external data storage, be mindful of using tools from a trusted service.