Data security

Data security
Data security means
protecting data, such as a
database, from
destructive forces and the
unwanted actions of
unauthorized users. [1]
Data security
technologies
Disk encryption
Disk encryption refers to
encryption technology
that encrypts data on a
hard disk drive. Disk
encryption typically takes
form in either software
(see disk encryption
software ) or hardware
(see disk encryption
hardware ). Disk
encryption is often
referred to as on-the-fly
encryption (OTFE) or
transparent encryption.
Hardware-based
mechanisms for
protecting data
Software-based security
solutions encrypt the data
to prevent it from theft.
However, a malicious
program or a hacker
could corrupt the data in
order to make it
unrecoverable, making
the system unusable.
Hardware-based security
solutions can prevent
read and write access to
data and hence offers
very strong protection
against tampering and
unauthorized access.
Hardware-based or
assisted computer
security offers an
alternative to software-
only computer security.
Security tokens such as
those using PKCS#11 may
be more secure due to
the physical access
required in order to be
compromised. Access is
enabled only when the
token is connected and
correct PIN is entered
(see two-factor
authentication). However,
dongles can be used by
anyone who can gain
physical access to it.
Newer technologies in
hardware-based security
solves this problem
offering fool proof
security for data.
Working of hardware-
based security: A
hardware device allows a
user to log in, log out and
set different privilege
levels by doing manual
actions. The device uses
biometric technology to
prevent malicious users
from logging in, logging
out, and changing
privilege levels. The
current state of a user of
the device is read by
controllers in peripheral
devices such as hard
disks. Illegal access by a
malicious user or a
malicious program is
interrupted based on the
current state of a user by
hard disk and DVD
controllers making illegal
access to data impossible.
Hardware-based access
control is more secure
than protection provided
by the operating systems
as operating systems are
vulnerable to malicious
attacks by viruses and
hackers. The data on hard
disks can be corrupted
after a malicious access is
obtained. With hardware-
based protection,
software cannot
manipulate the user
privilege levels. It is
impossible for a hacker or
a malicious program to
gain access to secure data
protected by hardware or
perform unauthorized
privileged operations.
This assumption is broken
only if the hardware itself
is malicious or contains a
backdoor. [2] The
hardware protects the
operating system image
and file system privileges
from being tampered.
Therefore, a completely
secure system can be
created using a
combination of hardware-
based security and secure
system administration
policies.
Backups
Backups are used to
ensure data which is lost
can be recovered and
nowadays it's very
important to keep a
backup of any data.
Data masking
Data Masking of
structured data is the
process of obscuring
(masking) specific data
within a database table or
cell to ensure that data
security is maintained and
sensitive information is
not exposed to
unauthorized personnel.
This may include masking
the data from users (for
example so banking
customer representatives
can only see the last 4
digits of a customers
national identity number),
developers (who need real
production data to test
new software releases but
should not be able to see
sensitive financial data),
outsourcing vendors, etc.
Data erasure
Data erasure is a method
of software-based
overwriting that
completely destroys all
electronic data residing
on a hard drive or other
digital media to ensure
that no sensitive data is
leaked when an asset is
retired or reused.
International laws and
standards
International laws
In the UK , the Data
Protection Act is used to
ensure that personal data
is accessible to those
whom it concerns, and
provides redress to
individuals if there are
inaccuracies. This is
particularly important to
ensure individuals are
treated fairly, for example
for credit checking
purposes. The Data
Protection Act states that
only individuals and
companies with legitimate
and lawful reasons can
process personal
information and cannot
be shared. Data Privacy
Day is an international
holiday started by the
Council of Europe that
occurs every January 28.
[3]
International standards
The international
standard ISO/IEC 17799
covers data security under
the topic of information
security, and one of its
cardinal principles is that
all stored information, i.e.
data, should be owned so
that it is clear whose
responsibility it is to
protect and control
access to that data.
The Trusted Computing
Group is an organization
that helps standardize
computing security
technologies.
The Payment Card
Industry Data Security
Standard is a proprietary
international information
security standard for
organizations that handle
cardholder information
for the major debit,
credit, prepaid, e-purse,
ATM and POS cards.
See also
Computer
security portal
Copy Protection
MicroTokeniza