Tarlon Khoubyari
       Staff Writer

Data is the driving force of today’s top companies and organizations.

With these mass amounts of data being processed, shared, and sold the protection of this information becomes a top priority. The loss of sensitive data or information can cost companies billions of dollars.

These threats and concerns are reflected in the news with increased frequency, with one such example being when the Washington Post reported, “Target says up to 70 million more customers were hit by Data Breach.” To protect consumers from those with ill intentions, companies often opt for encryption.

Encryption converts data and information into another form. Think of it as tiny optimal shapeshifters that protect servers and users from threats. It’s a protection mechanism that keeps out intruders and hackers. Companies use this method frequently because it’s one of the most efficient forms of cyber security currently deployed in practice.

For example, Google and DropBox use encryption to save, store, and protect their customers. Encryption puts a superseal on the file that only authorized users can access. It also changes the format of the file and disguises it. It can send data over a range of devices on different networks, not just via Internet. Obviously, people that have allowed access need a way to get to that information.

Keys are how that information is accessed, and they are used just like the ones on your keychain. They give you individual access to that server or set of information. They can be login codes, servers, pin numbers or software. A key helps to decipher the encrypted data that is being accessed. One early example of encryption was Leonardo Da Vinci writing many of his ideas so that they could only be read if heald upside and in a mirror.

For example, when signing into Canvas, UNCG students each have a login and password that is connected to UNCG’s database and mail server. Student login information is encrypted and stored onto three different databases. If Canvas has a security breach, student information may be compromised, but there is a security system in place that doesn’t allow that to happen easily.

Recently, Apple got into some conflict with the FBI for not allowing access via a backdoor, a secret access into a program that bypasses security measures, to unlock Syed Farook’s iPhone 5C. Farook is the San Bernardino shooter who killed 14 and injured 24.

Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, said that Apple will not comply because it compromises the security of other phones. Cook wrote an open letter that highlights why he believes “compromising the security of personal information can ultimately put our personal safety at risk.” He expressed concerns about the ability to contain the access, as well as concerns about the practice becoming commonplace.

Backdoors can help a company gain access to sensitive information even when the system has been fully compromised. They are security risks because they provide a key to an encrypted system, unlocking the data.  Cook argues that once this backdoor is implemented it can be replicated over a number of devices, not just the San Bernardino shooter. If Apple does not give up this information it could potentially cost them more than the legal action and pushback will.

Notably, encryption is one of the ways that people have been able to avoid NSA surveillance online, and the breakdown of encryption could expose even more of Americans’ data to security officials.

Cyber Security has become a national issue. As devices get smarter and security systems advance, hackers and criminals get smarter too. There is no magic solution but there are ways to keep protected.