84 percent considered encrypting all sensitive data as a security strategy and 66% state preventing data a breach was the rationale
SAN JOSE, Calif. – August 11, 2015 – Vormetric, a leader in enterprise data security for physical, virtual, big data and cloud environments, today announced in conjunction with IANS, an IANS custom report on Encryption as an Enterprise Strategy. The report is based on the results of a survey on data security options, challenges and drivers which polled over 100 information security influencers and decisions makers.
Key findings included:
- 84 percent of respondents had considered a security strategy of encrypting all sensitive data
- Top reasons for encrypting data included; preventing data breaches (66%), fulfilling compliance or audit mandates (54%) and protection of financial and other assets (53%)
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"Could encrypting everything result in a more simplified strategy for security technology, saving costs and improving security posture now and in the future? The idea is compelling, and the majority of security leaders we questioned felt that this could be a good idea. Currently, IANS recommends that organizations look at encryption more strategically, potentially exploring an ‘encrypt everything’ approach now or in the near future," states the IANS report.
Understandably given the current threat landscape, security professionals are increasingly concerned with protecting sensitive data within their organization and elsewhere. Overwhelmingly, respondents must contend with moving into cloud and outsourced service models while simultaneously combating resourceful attackers looking to compromise data from core systems. With these realities in mind, respondents are implementing encryption so solve tough problems, including securing data within:
- Databases (62%)
- Laptops (52%)
- Emails (48%)
- Private clouds (46%)
- Big data environments (37%)
According to the IANS report, “Many organizations we work with are seeing shifts in drivers for encryption overall, as well - encryption is rapidly going from a ‘security checkbox’ to a technology that can address specific and advanced security threats, as well as help to reduce compliance scope for many businesses, which turns encryption into an immediate business advantage.”
Over half (54%) responded that their top challenge when implementing encryption is legacy technology and support for encryption. Other roadblocks include the cost of encryption technology (52%) and worries about performance impacts (44%). But interestingly, and in spite of these pain points, a whopping 84% of respondents have considered a security strategy of “encrypt everything,” i.e. encrypting all sensitive data.
“Not only are perceptions of difficult and expensive implementations outdated, but encryption now also enables business velocity and advantage,” said VP of Global Marketing, Tina Stewart. “Modern encryption solutions enable organizations to not only safeguard traditional applications, but also to take advantage of cloud, SaaS services, IoT and big data without incurring new risks to data. As a result, encryption in now a critical driver of lower operational costs as well as the rapid development new services and offerings for competitive advantage and market expansion.”
For a look at the complete survey results, please click here.
Source/Methodology
For this paper, IANS conducted an independent survey of over 100 information security professionals to better understand how they are contending with more advanced attackers trying to compromise systems and steal data. Sixty-four percent of the respondents indicated that they were in security management (manager and director-level positions) with the remaining group (36%) stating they were in senior executive positions such as Vice President, CSO, CISO, CTO, and CIO. Twenty-five percent of respondents represented organizations with 20,000 or more employees, the largest percentage (48%) represented organizations between 1,000 and 5,000, and the rest represented organizations between 5,000 and 19,999.
About Thales
Thales (@Thales) is the industry leader in data security solutions that protect data-at-rest across physical, big data and cloud environments. Thales helps over 1500 customers, including 17 of the Fortune 30, to meet compliance requirements and protect what matters – their sensitive data – from both internal and external threats. The company’s scalable Vormetric Data Security Platform protects any file, any database and any application’s data —anywhere it resides — with a high performance, market-leading solution set. For more information, please visit: cpl.thalesgroup.com.
About IANS
IANS is the leading provider of in-depth security insights and decision support delivered through research, community, and consulting. Fueled by interactions among IANS Faculty and information security practitioners, IANS’ experience-driven advice helps IT security, risk management, and compliance executives make better, faster technical and managerial decisions. IANS was founded in 2001 as the Institute for Applied Network Security. Inspired by the Harvard Business School experience of interactive discussions driving collective insights, IANS adapted that format to fit the needs of the information security community.
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