Cyber-crime is on the rise. In our digital-first world, distributed workplaces and remote work routines are creating new security vulnerabilities. But how are enterprises responding to the increased threat landscape?
The 2021 Global Encryption Trends Study aims to answer this question and more by examining how and why enterprises deploy encryption. While IT professionals ranked protection of customer information as the most important reason for encryption, the study found customer information ranks fifth on the list of information that enterprises do encrypt. Instead, other data types ranked higher, such as financial records, payment-related data, employee/HR data and intellectual property. That means enterprises are leaving customer data vulnerable, even though they believe it’s the number one reason to deploy encryption.
Clearly, there is a disconnect between perceived threats and the realities of deploying encryption when it comes to prioritising customer data. To regain consumer trust, organisations need to align their intention to protect customer data with their actions. Brands that fail to protect their customers’ personal information inevitably place their reputations at risk.
The study reveals that encryption use continues to rise, with 50 per cent of organisations applying an overall encryption strategy consistently, while 37 per cent report a limited encryption strategy. Managing encryption is a pain point for many enterprises today.
The pandemic has put even more pressure on organisations to apply increased attention to their encryption solutions to protect against both internal and external threats. Whether it’s painful or not, enterprises will only benefit from prioritising their encryption and key management solutions – especially if it means helping their customers feel more secure, and decreasing risk to their business.
It’s encouraging that customer data protection is such a high priority for organisations, but there is clearly work to be done in turning that priority into a reality.
Read the full report at entrust.com/go/ 2021-GETS-Repor