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Whether you are an individual, a small business, or a global organization, keeping your data safe and secure is essential. Cybercriminals and hackers are getting more sophisticated all the time and so data storage methods need to constantly be updated with better security measures to stay ahead.
In 2020 in the US there were around 1000 data breaches. From these incidents, there were over 150 million people affected by having their data exposed to some degree. This could be passwords, security answers, emails, or sensitive financial details.
With cybercrime on the rise and companies storing information and data worth trillions of dollars, there is a vital need for secure data storage. Cloud-based storage is talked about and used widely but is this the best way to store important data?
What is cybercrime?
Cybercrime is any illegal activity that is conducted through electronic devices and some form of network; often, a computer or server, and the internet.
These individuals or entities seek to extract important and often sensitive data from businesses to make money. Data will either be ransomed back to the owner or offered for sale to another interested party. Other crimes can include taking an individual’s information such as credit card numbers, bank accounts, and passwords, hoping for some financial gain.
What is the difference between cybercriminals and hackers?
Cybercriminals and hackers are often banded together but are not necessarily the same. As the name implies, cyber criminals break the law and commit crimes. Hackers also break the law, but not all do it for monetary rewards.
Hackers come in different forms, or hats to be precise. A black hat hacker is a cybercriminal and hacks into networks and steals data for personal reward. A white-hat hacker, on the other hand, helps security companies find weaknesses in networks and formulates strategies to prevent data breaches.
There are also green, gray, blue, and red hats. Green hats are newbies, blue hats hack for personal grudges, red hats are vigilantes like some members of Anonymous claim to be, and gray hats are not necessarily criminals but they are not always ethical either.
What all these people have in common is that they try to find ways to get into private networks and expose data for their own purposes. To avoid these individuals and groups you need to choose a secure storage system.
What is cloud-based data storage?
Both big and small businesses need to be aware of cybersecurity risks and how to avoid them. One of the ways to keep data safe is to store it in the cloud and away from the physical company site.
There are many cloud-based storage platforms and there is a good chance that you use one on your mobile device or home computer. Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive, and Zoho Docs are all popular ways to store information and come with free versions.
These platforms allow the user to upload records, photos, documents, videos, or any digital file to their secure area. They have measures in place so that only authorized parties can access the records stored in the account. They usually have drag-and-drop interfaces and are user-friendly. In short, they are usually ideal for transferring files to friends, storing photos, or passing documents to authorized third parties.
However, the security levels may not be as high as some people or businesses require. A few years ago, over 68 million Dropbox account details appeared on a hacker trading site from a 2012 data breach.
What is the best way to store your data in the cloud securely?
Companies will employ security experts to ensure their networks and servers are secure but sometimes this isn’t enough. There are many important resources that businesses should use and virtual data rooms are one of them.
If you are looking for a secure cloud-based storage method for important and sensitive information then a virtual data room may be the answer.
At first glance, they may seem similar to other platforms such as Dropbox and they are in some ways, but they are also a world apart. VDRs allow the owner to upload data and files to their area just like Google Drive or Dropbox, and they can also allocate passwords to other users so that files can be shared.
The difference between a VDR and a regular cloud storage platform is in the functionality. A virtual data room will come with software that has a range of security and access features. They don’t only store data but they help businesses to process transactions and mergers safely and fast.
What are virtual data rooms and what do they do?
A VDR is a modern version of the traditional data room that was used by companies to perform due diligence before a merger or acquisition. These days, virtual data rooms can be used for this purpose still but also for many other uses.
Virtual data rooms are highly secure online storage areas that allow the sharing of records between interested parties. Access can be controlled so that one user is allowed to view and download files at any time, and another may be restricted to screen-viewing only.
The software that runs these data rooms comes with controls that allow the owner to redact information or prevent certain IPs from accessing data. Time restrictions can be put on file viewing, and tracking methods used to help with sales.
Granular tracking is one smart area that VDRs have that can show the seller in a transaction which documents are interesting to the buyer the most. This information can help the seller understand what concerns the buyer may have and therefore fix them.
More features of virtual data rooms are available from suppliers such as http://www.firmex.com/ where you can see other functions of VDRs. Virtual data rooms come with international security standards and with multiple languages so that users across the world can share data easily.
Who can use a virtual data room?
Traditionally, a regular data room might be used by an investment bank, financial institution, or anyone involved in a merger or acquisition transaction. These days, VDRs are used in project management, raising capital, and many other purposes. There is no reason why a small business with highly confidential or sensitive data might not use one but it is unlikely many individuals would have their own VDR.
In Europe the GDPR is put in place to help protect individual’s private data, the United States, however, doesn’t have a centralized data protection law but instead leaves it up to individual states to make their own rules. VDRs are vital in all these regions for keeping within these data laws and avoiding breaches so banks, data processing firms, IT consultants, and law firms all use virtual data rooms.
Summary
The National Institute of Security and Technology believes cybercrime is worse than believed and this is one reason why businesses must protect their data. If a business fails to comply with data protection regulations it can lead to breaches, fines, a loss of reputation, and financial loss.
While Dropbox and Google Drive can provide safe storage for many individuals, a virtual data room is a far more complex storage system that uses the cloud to keep data safe. These are trusted and used by big corporations such as Barclays and Deloitte and could help to keep your sensitive data safe too.
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