What is end-to-end encryption?
End-to-end encryption is a method of secure communication that prevents third parties from accessing data while it’s transferred from one end system or device to another. In end-to-end encryption, encryption occurs at the device level. That is, messages and files are encrypted before they leave the phone or computer and isn’t decrypted until it reaches its destination. As a result, hackers cannot access data on the server because they do not have the private keys to decrypt the data. Instead, secret keys are stored with the individual user on their device which makes it much harder to access an individual’s data. Encryption is the process by which data is scrambled (or encrypted) using an algorithm, requiring the receiving party to use a key to decrypt (and therefore, decode) the information. Without this decryption key, the encrypted information will be unreadable or illegible, and thus the confidentiality of the digital information will be protected. End-to-end encryption uses several cryptographic methods and keys. These include symmetric and asymmetric encryption. End-to-end encryption is the counterpart to point-to-point encryption.
What are asymmetric and symmetric encryption?
Symmetric encryption is the more conventional mode of encryption that uses the same key to encode and decode information.
While asymmetric encryption utilizes two keys to unlock the encrypted information. This is a newer, more complex version of encryption, with a public and a private key. The public key is in fact public, for anyone to use to send a message, but the private key is held by the owner to protect it.
In end-to-end encryption in a secure virtual data room, the data is encrypted on the sender’s system or device, and only the intended recipient can decrypt it. As it travels to its destination, the message cannot be read or tampered with by an internet service provider (ISP), application service provider, hacker or any other entity or service.
These additional layers of security and privacy in a secure data storage and file sharing platform like the best virtual data room like DocullyVDR ensures that sensitive information is only accessible to the people and systems that it is intended for. With huge volumes of critical business information now stored in the cloud and growing concerns with data privacy, it’s increasingly important to make sure your data is protected.
End-to-end encryption in the any secure virtual data room platform means that all sensitive data is encrypted. This includes not only documents and files in the platform, but other data as well – including Q&A questions and responses, and threaded comments that continue to build up as parties and teams collaborate on the deal or business documentation. Moreover encryption protects your data when it is at rest, in transit/motion, even externally and internally.
End-to-end encryption provided by the best virtual data room services like DocullyVDR is your best defence against all types of data breaches. It is just one of the ways we keep the data stored on the virtual data room platform impenetrable, protecting against both external threats and accidental internal human errors. The state-of-the-art virtual data room technology that is built seamlessly into your secure data room, feeds it’s AI-powered analytics tools and is wrapped up in a super simple interface. It’s continually processing millions of calculations by the second to continuously protect your business sensitive data and consequently your company’s reputation.
Multi-factor authentication is also provided to safeguard against password breaching, allowing you to prove your identity before you access any data on the secure data storage platform.
What does end-to-end encryption protect against?
Prying eyes: End-to-end encryption restricts anyone other than the sender and intended recipient from reading message information in transit because only the sender and recipient have the keys to decrypt the message. It won’t be legible to anyone even to the intermediary server that is helping transmitting the message.
Tampering: It also protects against tampering with encrypted messages. There is no way to predictably alter a message encrypted this way, so any attempts at altering would be obvious.
Data Breaches: End-to-end encryption ensures the privacy of your communication. These messages are un-decryptable by anyone other than the recipient. No one can change the message.
What are the Advantages of end-to-end encryption?
Data privacy and protection is the biggest and main advantage of end-to-end encryption. It is provided by the following features:
- Security in transit: End-to-end encryption uses public key cryptography, which stores private keys on the endpoint devices. Messages can only be decrypted using these keys, so only people with access to the endpoint devices are able to read the message.
- Tamper-proof: Since the decryption key does not have to be transmitted; the recipient will already have it. If a message encrypted with a public key gets altered or tampered with in transit, the recipient will not be able to decrypt it, so the tampered contents will not be viewable.
- Compliance: Many industries are bound by regulatory compliance laws that require encryption-level data security. End-to-end encryption can help organizations protect that data by making it unreadable.
The biggest advantage of end-to-end encryption is that unauthorized persons cannot access the data. If someone circumvents the encryption, only unidentifiable numbers and letters can be recognized. End-to-end encryption is therefore basically very secure, provided that the operating systems are always up to date.
The DocullyVDR team is a provider of a new generation secure data sharing platform designed for businesses. The team has extensive experience in working with document sharing platforms and has been assisting the Virtual Data Room community since 2019 by providing users with free information.