Data "encryption" to secure your online back-ups
Backing up data is a critical issue for businesses. Increasingly delegated to online servers, how secure is it? And how do you assess the quality of existing solutions?
Online back-ups: the importance of data encryption
Physical backup and its limitations
Online backup is gradually replacing physical backup. Remember that backing up data locally was not without risk. External threats, such as fire, water damage, power surges and so on, could damage data. But there were also internal threats associated with human responsibility: errors, oversights, lack of time to deal with them, etc.
Online backup...
... in practice...
SaaS (Software as a Service) mode has the great advantage of being mobile. Your backed-up data can be accessed from any device, at any time and wherever you are, as long as you have an Internet connection. Mobility therefore becomes synonymous with productivity. You don't have to be physically in one place or dependent on a workstation to access your data.
... and secure
When we hear SaaS, we often worry about the security aspect. This is a point on which publishers are very vigilant. By deploying specific devices, they secure your Internet connection and protect access to your data infrastructure. Encryption is the process of transforming a clear message into a message that is incomprehensible to anyone who does not have the decryption key. Commonly used, the term "encryption" of data is a misnomer in French, coming from the English word " encryption". Encryption consists of conditioning access. You must have a key - a sort of code - or give the answer to a secret question, for access to be granted. Encryption is :
- symmetrical: the same key is used to encrypt and decrypt the protected content,
- or asymmetric: the two keys are separate. The encryption key is called the public key, while the decryption key is called the private key.
The second option is considered to be the most secure, virtually inviolable. With the Neobe online backup solution, only the user knows the key. The data is encrypted, element by element, in 256 bits (AES Rijndael). This makes them unreadable throughout the process: from the moment the files are backed up to the moment they are restored. And the key is the only way to make them readable. On a solution like oodrive_save published by Oodrive, the key is a passphrase. The user chooses a question, and must give the answer to access the saved data. This data is also encrypted end-to-end using a 256-bit AES key.
The keys to evaluating existing backup solutions
Ease of use
Asymmetric encryption, while very powerful, can have one drawback: slowness. But if you want your data to be backed up and protected, you don't want it to be difficult to access. After all, on a day-to-day basis, this can be laborious. And if backup and restore actions become time-consuming, that's just as much unproductive time spent on a support task with no added value. And that will ultimately harm your business. Publishers like Oodrive have designed comprehensive backup plans that are simple to deploy and maintain. So that you can operate in a secure and fluid environment, without having to devote time or energy to it.
Automation
Backing up is not always a reflex. Unless you write it down as a reminder, you run the risk of forgetting to do it or to update it. That's where your service provider can help. Several of them offer to automate the process. With Beemo2cloud and Neobe, for example, you set the desired frequency, and the software takes care of synchronising your backed-up data with any new data it detects, on one or more devices or servers. Systematic alerts and reports can be set up to monitor the status and extent of the data.
Restoration
Restoring your data can temporarily overload your hosting provider. If your files are large and stored elsewhere, transferring them is likely to saturate the bandwidth, and may even cause errors or corrupt your files. To avoid this, data exchange must be incremental. The Delta-Bloc mode of the oodrive_save solution is designed to achieve this. The publisher can also offer you a DRP (Disaster Recovery Plan ) in which your data can be restored to the machine of your choice, or to a hard disk delivered to your address.
To find out more, download the white paper on DRP:
Guarantees
Geography is a very popular argument. Rather than entrusting their data to far-flung players with no visibility or tracking, companies still prefer to know that their data is on national soil. That's why publishers emphasise this: the servers of Oxibox, Oodrive, Neobe and Beemo2cloud are all located in France. Certifications are also an indication of reliability: Oodrive meets the ISO 27 001 standard, for example. The availability of support is also reassuring. This is a point that Neobe in particular emphasises. The SLA (Service Level Agreement) of each publisher also reveals their level of commitment. Some go so far as to offer exceptional insurance cover in the event of data loss, ranging from €3 million at Oodrive to €8 million at Oxibox.
Backing up your business data online has now become an imperative. For a company, understanding the security issues involved means appreciating data encryption systems and being sensitive to reliability criteria when choosing a service provider.
Article translated from French