Nowadays, there is an increased necessity to protect personal and corporate information as more human private and professional activities migrate to cyberspace, making them vulnerable to various threats. In this regard, data confidentiality, integrity, and availability (CIA) principles help determine which methods should be used to ensure greater information security at rest, in motion, and in use. They include encryption, data leak and loss prevention, identity and access management, and information rights management.
Encryption is the first popular method to secure data while it is at rest or in motion. It can be the encryption of the whole disk or of individual elements of the system, such as emails, separate files, and databases. At its core, encryption makes the information that certain files contain unreadable unless the user inputs the correct key to decipher the encoded data. For this reason, while unauthorized users can obtain the files, they cannot access the information.
The second common method is data leak and loss prevention, which is used to secure data at rest and in motion. Normally such programs as Intrusion Detective Systems, antiviruses, and firewalls help to accomplish these functions. For instance, the former helps to detect the fact of a security breach and identify the source of the attack. On the contrary, the latter two prevent unauthorized movement and access to information. As such, these programs analyze the data traffic, control the user’s eligibility to access particular data, and detect strange activities that are against security policies.
Finally, identity and access management and information rights management ensure the protection of data in use. Identity and access management allows only certain users who fit the eligibility criteria to open and transfer the information. To achieve that, an individual should prove one’s identity by bypassing the authentication process. In a similar vein, information rights management conducts an identity check before users can change and otherwise manipulate data and files.
Information security is a complex process requiring different approaches to address various user needs. While data in motion or at rest can be protected by adopting encryption and data leak prevention methods, identity and access management and information rights management ensure the security of data in use. These solutions together are able to restrict unauthorized information access and prevent unapproved data manipulation effectively.