Why You Need to Secure Your Documents with Military-grade Encryption

Every one of us has documents that are too personal or too confidential to share with just anybody, such as our tax returns, old photographs of loved ones, or details about a hobby we wouldn't mind keeping to ourselves.

Every one of us has documents that are too personal or too confidential to share with just anybody, such as our tax returns, old photographs of loved ones, or details about a hobby we wouldn't mind keeping to ourselves.

However, storing information on a portable device like a laptop or desktop PC is risky. Theft is one risk, but so is making a careless online move that gives a hacker access to your entire system. If you really want to protect your data, your best bet is to encrypt your documents and directories.

The key management solution that is implemented by a file encryption solution is crucial to the safety of the system. However, users require access to these keys to decode data for lawful purposes. But it's important to prevent attackers from gaining access to the decryption keys that would otherwise allow them to read the encrypted documents. It is crucial that encryption keys be safely maintained and only accessible to authorised users in any file encryption system.

File Encryption

What is File Encryption?

Encryption is the process of making the contents of a file garbled.  Encryption technology relies on complex algorithms to secure data. This ensures that only those who have the encryption key can access the information. A file is considered encrypted if its contents have been scrambled using an encoding algorithm.

The decryption key is only given to authorised users. When the proper password or passphrase is entered by the intended receiver, the file is once again accessible. File encryption is typically a built-in feature of operating systems and file systems. With the decryption key, your important files are stored securely on the system and can be accessed at any time.

Encrypting files before sending them over the Internet or transferring them on a portable device like a USB drive has many advantages. It secures the data while it's in transit, which is when it's most likely to be tampered with or compromised.

Many parameters, including key length and encryption method, affect how quickly, efficiently, and securely data may be encrypted. Overall, using encryption, you only need to protect your password instead of a whole file's worth of data.

Which Files Should Be Encrypted on Your Device?

It's up to the individual to decide which files need an additional layer of protection. It all comes down to the specifics of the data you wish to keep private and how much of it you wish to keep secret.

However, some examples would be:

  • Records and documents pertaining to financial management
  • Documentation with legal implications
  • Personally Identifiable Information (PII)
  • Confidential project documents
  • Data Backups and archives

To sum up, you should think about encrypting any document or file that could be used against you, such as personal data or intellectual property.

Why Do You Need to Encrypt Your Files and Documents?

Encrypted File Transfers

During the transfer, a file is more vulnerable to attack. It is crucial to have complete confidence in the security of the data you manage and always communicate.

When it comes to exchanging files with others, no method is completely secure. This includes cloud storage and online sharing services, USB flash drives, and emails. If your file is encrypted before transmission, it will remain secure even if it is intercepted.

Regulatory Compliance

Any company dealing with files should prioritise regulatory compliance. If you need to comply with any local, state, or federal laws regarding the storage, disclosure or transmission of personal information, file encryption software can help. One of the safest ways to communicate and store data while maintaining compliance and avoiding expensive fines is with the help of file encryption software.

The regulatory compliance landscape has become more intricate in recent years. Historically, businesses have had to focus on meeting industry-specific mandates like HIPAA and PCI DSS. After the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) went into effect, several other countries followed suit with their own data privacy regulations, such as the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).

Layered Protection

When it comes to securing your data, it's best to employ a layered approach. Each layer addresses a potential security flaw that could be exploited in a cyberattack or data breach. The best way to ensure the safety of your data is to use multiple layers of security, one of which is a file encryption tool.

Protect Your Stolen Devices

While working from home, mobile devices undoubtedly make life easier, but they also enhance the potential for cybercrime. Mobile devices like smartphones, tablets, and laptops are especially vulnerable to theft and loss in public places. If this happens, the burglar could potentially access private company data by scanning the device's hard drives.

Using encryption on your documents is a prevention strategy in case your mobile device gets lost or stolen. The user's password safeguards the encryption keys used to encrypt all files on the system. The data on a stolen device is useless to an attacker unless they know the device's password.

Move to Cloud Encryption

The risks associated with insufficient cloud security are amplified by the fact that cloud services can be accessed from anywhere with an Internet connection. Therefore, with the rise in cloud use, the amount of data breaches involving cloud storage has also increased.

Failing to encrypt data stored in the cloud is a typical oversight made by many businesses. This means that an organisation's data security in the cloud is only as good as its weakest link.

Cloud data breaches are made more difficult by using file encryption in the cloud. Access to a company's cloud-based data storage is useless without also having access to the decryption keys for that data.

It is crucial to always prevent data breaches and hacking. While protocols such as TLS safeguard information while it is in transit, they provide no security whatsoever for information while it is stored locally. All files can be encrypted before being saved to a computer's hard drive or a portable storage device, providing an extra layer of security for sensitive data. When data is encrypted using a strong method, only the person in possession of the decryption key may access the information.

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