What is important for the selection of an encryption software tool for protecting your data in the cloud

Beside all the convenience the internet has brought us, the worldwide connectivity comes at a risk. A risk we should underestimate under no circumstances – the risk of our most private and most sensitive information being stolen.

Working With Cloud Storages in Daily Business

One of the most convenient inventions of the internet is “the cloud”. The cloud brings us seemingly unlimited storage capacity or processing power. Both aspects have convinced many businesses of using cloud services and storage, for saving data. According to a report by Flexera in 2020 alone, more than 50% of enterprises moved their workloads to the cloud. This number is expected to grow further. Additionally, this study indicates that 83 % of enterprises see the security of the cloud as a challenge.
This trend might put all of us at risk of our personal data being exposed: Because not only is the usage of the cloud growing significantly, so is the number of attacks on the cloud. Especially with the Covid-19 Pandemic and increased number of employees working from home, the amount of cyber-attacks grew. McAfee reported an average of 648 threats per minute (!) in the last quarter of 2020 with Ransomware still being the biggest threat for companies.
So, our most sensitive data is stored in the cloud. Although the physical protection of the stored data is high, in the vast majority of cases the contents of the files are not effectively protected from unauthorized access with end-to-end encryption. The cloud is becoming targeted more and more, by people with malicious intentions: That’s a scary thought, right?

Will We Lose Control Over Our Private Data?

Besides most businesses shifting their data storage to the cloud, so do more and more private persons. Sharing pictures taken on a holiday trip, a wedding or any other occasion has become more convenient than ever. In addition, local storage space can be saved – that sound pretty convincing, right? Moreover, saving important documents in the cloud seems to be clever, too. This way our important documents cannot be lost and a possible technical failure of the device containing these documents. Loosing this data can be avoided that way. Furthermore, some people might want to have those documents available at any time ¬– just in case (like healthcare information, copies of passports, etc.).

But do we want our pictures being seen by someone we don’t know, and we did not share those pictures with?

Certainly not – and this is especially true for sensitive documents we store in the cloud. So, could 2021 be the year we lose control over our most private data? Not if we decide to choose a strong encryption software.

The Encryption Software Boxcryptor Protects Your Data

No matter which sensitive data you want to safe in the cloud, you should always ensure it is encrypted with a strong end-to-end encryption: Boxcryptor gives you exactly this.

We provide you with an encryption software using a hybrid combination of the encryption algorithms AES (256) and RSA. This is a prerequisite for true end-to-end encryption, and you can rest assured that your data is securely stored in the cloud. Secured against physical damage because it is in the cloud, but also secured against unauthorized access by anyone. Only you are in possession of the key, needed to decrypt your files and view them. We work under the zero-knowledge principle. Therefore, not even we, as the encryption software provider can access your files at any point in time.

The software mounts a virtual drive on your computer or Mac, in which the sync- folders of your Dropbox, OneDrive or other cloud provider (we support more than 30 cloud providers), and even your own, local NAS or File Server is included. This results in the most convenient encryption available. You do not have to think about encrypting and uploading the files individually after you worked on them – the encryption happens in the background once you work in your Boxcryptor drive.

Of course, you can access your files from your mobile devices, too. Because Boxcryptor is available for your Android or iOS devices. Simply download the app from the respective store and enjoy the benefits of this encryption software on your mobile devices.

The Best Part About It: Boxcryptor Is for Free

With Boxcryptor Free, you get the full protection of our strong hybrid end-to-end encryption for a cloud provider of your choice. You can connect two devices to your Boxcryptor account so you can access your files from any of these two devices. Additionally, we offer you a secure way for sending files to anyone. Test our secure file transfer service Whisply if you want to send an encrypted file to someone who does not use Boxcryptor yet.

You need more devices or use more than one cloud? No problem at all: With Boxcryptor Personal you get an unlimited number of devices you may connect to your Boxcryptor account and an unlimited number of cloud providers to mount in your Boxcryptor drive. Our paid plans offer you an extended service, like support by our specialists, should you encounter any issue with the software.

If you are looking for a way to protect your business data, for example if you are a freelancer, you do not need to look further: Our Boxcryptor Business plan is meant to be used for commercial purposes and grants you with the option of working with, and managing groups, so you and your business partners can work together on your ideas, no matter where you are.
But of course, Boxcryptor is also available if you want to work securely in larger groups. Is your department or company using Dropbox, OneDrive, SharePoint, or any other cloud storage provider? Then you should have a look at our Boxcryptor for Teams licenses. Get the best out of the cloud for your business, while knowing your most important files remain safe.

More features of Boxcryptor for increased security

All Boxcryptor plans provide the option to add an additional authentication device, required at login (2-Factor-Authentication). The Personal and Business plan, as well as our “for teams” plans include the additional option of filename encryption, making not only the file illegible, without your Boxcryptor account, but also the file names become indecipherable outside of your Boxcryptor drive. If you save sensitive data in the cloud, it might be advisable to hide the names of the files, too.

Boxcryptor Company and Boxcryptor Enterprise (for teams) customers are provided with an even wider range of features, which make Boxcryptor very easy to be integrated into the existing IT-infrastructure and into the workflow: We support existing Identity Providers, support the setup process, and allow to set individual policies to suit your company’s need for accessibility and security.