Experts Agree That Encyption Is Key to Enterprise Data Security

Apr 3, 2007 2:29 PM

A new survey of information security executives indicates that enterprise encryption is vital for the protection of sensitive data.

Enterprise encryption is defined as the persistent encryption of sensitive data stored on any device within an enterprise, including servers, storage devices, desktop computers, POS systems and mobile devices, such as laptop computers and USB drives.

BitArmor Systems Inc., Pittsburgh, an enterprise encryption vendor, conducted the survey among attendees at MIS Training Institute's 2007 InfoSec World Conference and Expo in Orlando held March 19-21.

According to the survey, information security professionals clearly recognize the importance of enterprise encryption in securing information across the organization.

Key findings from the survey include:

• 100 percent of respondents who experienced a data breach within the last 18 months strongly agreed that enterprise encryption would improve their companies' data security.


• Not all breaches occurred as a result of lost laptops or USB drives; 25 percent of those who experienced a data breach said the breach occurred as a result of either external attacks or insider abuse.


• 59 percent of respondents encrypt data on laptop computers, yet inside the firewall, only 34 percent encrypt data on desktop computers, and only 31 percent encrypt data on application servers.


• 70 percent of those who experienced breaches identified cardholder data, intellectual property, customer data, and personally identifiable information as the primary types of breached data.


• Those whose companies do not employ enterprise encryption equally cited administrative complexity and difficulty for end-users as deterrents.

The survey also showed that compliance with state, federal and industry regulations involving data security is a primary driver for enterprise encryption.

The majority of survey respondents stated that their companies must comply with two or more data security regulations, and some were pressured with as many as 12.

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