Password Protection vs Encryption: Why Encryption is More Secure
When it comes to the security of confidential information, the internet can be a very non-secure place. However, there are various methods to protect the integrity of documents online, such as password protection and encryption. But which one is better for you? This article will detail the similarities and differences between both methods in relation to information security.
Password protection is a security process that protects your computer from unauthorized access via authentication and verification processing. In simple words, your online information is protected using a unique password – only an authorized user with the correct password can view the content.Some companies have a password protection policy and/or use password protection software to ensure the security of sensitive information online.
Why is Password Protection Important
Passwords act as the first line of defence against hackers. If an unauthorized user attempts to compromise your account and steal personal information, rather than have open access to do so, they will need to know your unique password. Therefore, creating a strong password is very important to prevent data theft.
But how does password protection differ from encryption? Is one better than the other?
What is Data Encryption
In the event that a cyber attacker intercepts your email correspondence or hacks into your work account, they’re going to be disappointed if you’ve encrypted your data. Data encryption essentially renders the information in your documents useless to anyone other than the authorized user. It works by translating data from plaintext (readable) to ciphertext (unreadable).
Ciphertext is made up of randomized letters, symbols, and numbers and can only be deciphered with an encryption key.
Why is Data Encryption Important
For companies that deal with sensitive client information, encrypting data should be a top priority. Encryption protects data in transit, at rest and end-to-end, so as the information travels between networks and systems, it remains secure.
The Key Difference
Data encryption not only prevents cyberattackers from accessing your confidential information, but it goes a step further than password protection. As discussed, passwords act as the first line of defence against outsider threats. However, if you have a weak password and someone guesses it correctly or hacks it, they now have access to all of your account information and data. What data encryption does is make your data unreadable so in the event that your password is compromised, your sensitive information remains untouched.
How to Encrypt Data
Many companies use data encryption software to protect their sensitive documentation. For professionals that constantly send and receive confidential information online, many use TitanFile for a secure and efficient file-sharing experience.
Rather than figure out how to manually encrypt individual files, TitanFile automatically encrypts files the moment they are uploaded to your secure workspace. Files remain encrypted in transit, at rest, and end-to-end for optimal protection.
Interested in using secure file-sharing software? TitanFile is currently offering a free 15-day trial of the platform for you to experience seamless and secure file sharing. Follow this link, to sign up.
Encryption scrambles information so that it is unreadable without a passcode. It is especially useful for laptops, tablets, phones, USB flash drives, and similar small devices that are easily lost or stolen.
Encryption is used to protect data from being stolen, changed, or compromised and works by scrambling data into a secret code that can only be unlocked with a unique digital key.
Only people with the right key can decode and see the information. It's like having a lock and key for your data, which gives you some safety. But even though encryption is strong, it's not perfect. People who want to steal data are always finding new ways to break these codes.
Regulatory Compliance: To ensure that customer data is handled and stored safely, encryption helps organizations comply with rules particular to their industry. Cloud Data Security: When data is transferred to cloud storage, privacy is guaranteed by encrypted storage.
AES is widely considered invulnerable to all attacks except for brute force. Regardless, many internet security experts believe AES will eventually be regarded as the go-to standard for encrypting data in the private sector.
Since encryption is two-way, the data can be decrypted so it is readable again. Hashing, on the other hand, is one-way, meaning the plaintext is scrambled into a unique digest, through the use of a salt, that cannot be decrypted.
Encryption ensures no one can read communications or data except the intended recipient or data owner. This prevents attackers from intercepting and accessing sensitive data.
Always Encrypted ensures that encryption is seamless for applications. On the client-side, Always Encrypted-enabled driver encrypts sensitive data before sending it to the Database Engine and automatically rewrites queries to maintain application semantics.
If a cybercriminal finds a vulnerability somewhere along the data transmission path, or by getting their hands on your data encryption keys, your encrypted enterprise data can still be hacked and your systems compromised.
While encryption can be an important tool to keep data secure, it also comes with a few cons. The primary downside of data encryption is cost. Encryption requires advanced hardware and software to be implemented, and this can be expensive.
AES 256-bit encryption is the strongest and most robust encryption standard that is commercially available today. While it is theoretically true that AES 256-bit encryption is harder to crack than AES 128-bit encryption, AES 128-bit encryption has never been cracked.
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Encryption ensures no one can read communications or data except the intended recipient or data owner. This prevents attackers from intercepting and accessing sensitive data.
It helps protect private information, sensitive data, and can enhance the security of communication between client apps and servers. In essence, when your data is encrypted, even if an unauthorized person or entity gains access to it, they will not be able to read it.
Encryption ensures that unauthorized third parties or threat actors cannot understand the data in the event they gain access to it. For example, the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard requires merchants to encrypt customer payment card data both at rest and when transmitted across public networks.
Introduction: My name is Frankie Dare, I am a funny, beautiful, proud, fair, pleasant, cheerful, enthusiastic person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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