Three basic tools to bring more data security to companies

When data security specialists join a new company, the first steps they need to take include assessing the current situation not only when it comes to processes and tools but also regarding the people within the company. Who has access to essential data in the company? Where is it stored, and what are the processes people go through to enter and work with the data? How familiar and comfortable are the employees and C-Level executives with data security tools and procedures?

Once you have this basic information at hand, it's possible to start implementing tools and bringing better practices - from basic to more advanced - to companies. We talked with some of our leading experts in cybersecurity and asked them what would be the three first things they'd bring to a company to make data safer.

Here's what they told us:

1. A physical authentication key

By now, and especially with increasing hacks, most people are familiar with multi-factor authentication. Even non-tech people now are, to at least some extent, familiar with the process of logging in (usually to a social media app or website) and then having to authenticate through an authentication app or a code, most of the time sent by SMS message.

This is good, but it's far from good enough.

Specialists reiterate the need for a physical authentication key. It increases security by making the user physically insert a USB device, like Yubikeys, for example, into the computer before allowing access to data or logging into pages and software. Unfortunately, one of the most popular authentication methods, the SMS message, is one of the easiest to surpass, our specialists say. "The hacker can very easily gain access to your SMS messages just by contacting your phone operator with really not much information about you," one of our developers explained.

2. VPN should be the norm

Everyone should use a VPN. This is what every expert has told us again and again. Long gone are the days when a VPN was just used to go around geoblocks only. Instead, a VPN is a serious business tool that prevents data leaks, especially as many websites are still not encrypted to this day. Securing one's IP address is the first step in protecting the data that a computer contains or accesses. In addition, many VPN tools now also help block malware or block ads and other things hackers may use for phishing attacks. 

The ability to change countries is also helpful for more than trying to trick sites into showing you more or different content. It can also add to the line of defence against hackers.

3. Encrypted mail

This one might be a bit more difficult to implement in a world dominated by the likes of Microsoft Teams, Google Workplace, etc. But IT security experts all agree that using an encrypted service for email is an excellent step towards data safety. A secure mail, such as the one with ProtonMail, for example, introduces high data security, neutrality and end-to-end encryption to your email conversations. That means that even the company itself cannot access or read your emails.

Cryptography, be it on your email servers or mainly used to safeguard your databases, is an essential part of any data security protocol. However, we understand that having an entire database encrypted could be difficult because it technically makes it harder for specialists to search and work with that data.

This is where Vaultree's encryption solution revolutionises the concept. With our state-of-the-art technology, users can search and request specific information in large databases without actually decrypting it. So, no, we won't have access to the non-encrypted file, and we won't even know what you are looking for. But we will give you the information you search and request for anyways. This is how good the solution is - and you'll also be impressed with how fast it works. Not even experienced software engineers can believe it at first…until they see it in action.

Sign up here to chat with one of our specialists and be one of the first people to use this impressive tool.