Methods of securing data
Data security helps prevent data tampering and unauthorized access while minimizing data exposure.
Core principles of data security
Ensures that data has not been altered or tampered with during transmission. The objective is to guarantee that the recipient receives the original document that was sent.
Importance of data security
Prioritizing data security is important for:
- Data protection and confidentiality Prevent data breaches and protect sensitive information from unauthorized access.
- Meeting legal requirements Many international and industry-specific regulations mandate data encryption and strong security practices. Examples include:
- GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation), requiring technical and organizational measures to ensure data protection.
- PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard), requiring encryption of cardholder data during transmission across open, public networks.
- Consumer trust Commitment to data security builds confidence with customers, partners, and stakeholders.
- Operational integrity Encryption and hashing techniques secure communication and ensure that data has not been corrupted or altered.
Security mechanisms include encryptionencryption, hashinghashing, and digital signatures.
Encryption
Encryption is a method of converting original data (plaintext) into an unreadable format (ciphertext) to ensure confidentiality and secure communication. Encryption is reversible with the correct key. Encryption can be symmetric (using the same key for encryption and decryption) or asymmetric (using a public key to encrypt the data and a private key to decrypt it).
Encyption is most often used for confidential data, like financial records, and for secure communications (TLS/SSL).
In Make, you can encrypt and decrypt data using AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) or PGP (Pretty Good Privacy).
Symmetric encryption
Uses the same key for both encrypting and decrypting messages. Both the sender and receiver need to have access to the identical key.
- Advantages
- Fast performance: Encrypts and decrypts data quickly, making it good for large files.
- Simple implementation: Uses a single key for a straightforward setup.
- Disadvantages
- The secret key must be shared securely. If someone gets the key, they can read all the encrypted data.
Modules in Make:
Asymmetric encryption
Uses a pair of keys. The public key is used to encrypt the data and the private key is used to decrypt it. The receiver shares the public key with anyone who wants to encrypt and send a message to them. Only the receiver can decrypt it using the private key that is kept secret.
- Advantages
- Private key protected: The private key used to decrypt the message is not shared.
- Supports digital signatures: You can use asymmetric encryption to implement the signature and verify who sent a message and ensure it wasn't altered.
- Disadvantages
- Slower performance: It processes data more slowly than symmetric encryption. It is less efficient for encrypting big files due to its complexity.
Modules in Make:
Hashing
Hashing is a one-way conversion of data to verify the integrity of the data. Hashing is not reversible. The output is called a hash value.
A hash value is a fixed-length string of characters generated by a hash function that uniquely represents the input data. It is used to verify that data hasn't been changed. The process is one way, meaning it's impossible to determine the original message from the hash.
Hashing is most often used for password storage, file integrity, and digital signatures.
In Make, you can:
- Use the Encryptor > Create digital signature module to generate a unique hash using SHA-1 or SHA-256.
- Use hash functionshash functions in other app modules as needed.