CIOs, CSOs, and IT managers wage a daily war on cybercrime. Despite advances in data security, data breaches have become more frequent and more damaging. Traditional approaches to data security, such as firewalls, intrusion detection, access controls, and endpoint security, are no longer enough. Artificial intelligence (AI) and other technological advances make it easier than ever to breach enterprise security systems and steal sensitive data. Data encryption offers the best possible defense.
Winning the war on cybercrime requires new weapons and a new approach. Next-generation hardware security modules (HSMs) with advanced encryption key management provide a new level of data encryption. Unlike complex security solutions, HSMs provide simplified encryption certificates and key management across multiple vendors, environments, and devices. Hardware-enabled encryption is more robust than software-based encryption and provides hardened security across cloud infrastructures.
HSM data encryption is the secret weapon that can help win the war on cybercrime.
The Limitations of Traditional Encryption
Encryption has long been used to protect sensitive data, but conventional enterprise encryption methods are inadequate to protect data from modern cyberattacks. Legacy encryption systems are limited when it comes to protecting data in a diverse network infrastructure.
- Siloed encryption protects data at isolated endpoints. The challenge is that siloed encryption doesn’t support data transmitted across the infrastructure.
- Key management systems are essential to data encryption, but encryption key management has traditionally been a complex, manual process. Legacy key management systems are fragmented, lack automation, and don’t comply with industry regulations.
- Data encryption systems often add overhead that affects network performance.
- Software encryption relies on the underlying operating system, which allows hackers to exploit software vulnerabilities.
- Legacy encryption technology doesn’t integrate well with multi-vendor and cloud environments.
- Legacy encryption systems offer only limited support for zero-trust architectures.
- Most encryption systems focus on protecting data at rest, but growing concerns exist about protecting data in use.
Enterprise technology continues to evolve, and so do cyberthreats. The limitations of legacy encryption systems put organizations at serious risk.
New Technologies Empower Hackers
Technological advances are making it easier to become a hacker. An abundance of increasingly sophisticated attack tools is available on the dark web, including Cybercrime-as-a-Service that sells ransomware, malware, and other dirty tricks.
Open-source exploit kits, AI-powered malware, and automation have made it easier for lone attackers and criminal networks to launch sophisticated attacks. Brute-force attacks, AI-enhanced phishing, credential stuffing, and other attacks can now be automated, making cyberthreats relentless and frequently successful.
HSMs Provide a New Line of Defense
Next-generation HSMs address these threats head-on. Using automated key management, HSMs are secure, tamper-resistant devices that enable end-to-end data encryption. They are the ideal solution to protect data across complex, distributed infrastructures.
HSMs provide a centralized, advanced key management system with greater data security. Unlike legacy strategies, HSMs deliver end-to-end data encryption, protecting data at rest and data in motion. HSMs automate encryption key management, generating, distributing, rotating, and revoking keys as needed.
HSMs also integrate with multi-cloud key management systems. Users can adopt a BYOK (Bring Your Own Key) strategy to generate and import their own encryption keys using an HSM. HYOK (Hold Your Own Key) is a more rigorous approach where the cloud user retains total control over encryption keys, including generation, storage, and usage, by maintaining keys on their own HSM.
Post-quantum computing (PQC) is a growing concern as cybercriminals continue to gather encrypted data in anticipation of quantum computing technology capable of breaking the encryption. HSM encryption ensures regulatory compliance and readiness for PQC, including support for the latest PQC algorithms and NIST standards (FIPS 140-2 and 140-3).
HSMs also defend against insider threats since encryption keys are secured within hardened hardware. HSMs also offer security against AI-driven threats, detecting and responding to anomalies. HSM data encryption is ideal as a foundation for zero-trust, identity- and access-based security architectures.
HSMs In Action to Prevent Cybercrime
HSMs are already proving invaluable in the fight against cybercriminals, especially in industries that rely on highly sensitive data. Here are just a few real-world applications for HSM data encryption:
In financial services, HSMs secure payment processes by encrypting transaction data. They also encrypt point-of-sale (POS) and ATM transactions, using EMV chip technology to secure card payments by enabling tokenization of sensitive customer data. HSM encryption also guarantees compliance with PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) and other regulatory standards.
In healthcare and keeping electronic medical records (EMRs), HSMs encrypt patient records for security as required for HIPAA compliance. Encryption secures real-time health information generated as IoT data generated by medical devices. HSMs also maintain comprehensive audit logs for security and regulatory compliance.
The government and the Department of Defense rely on HSM encryption to encrypt classified communications and data. HSM security also protects national ID systems, like social security, including futureproofing data protection with PQC.
More organizations are adopting multi-vendor cloud and hybrid cloud-centric environments, and next-generation HSMs give them control over data security without relying on cloud vendors. Strategies like BYOK and HYOK create strong, seamless encryption protection across AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and other service providers.
Encryption continues to be the best defense against cybercriminals. It’s an essential part of any zero-trust architecture. Next-generation HSMs offer a scalable, standards-compliant encryption solution that secures data no matter where it resides – at rest, in transit, or in use. As cybercriminals adopt new tools like AI and anticipate the reality of quantum computing, organizations are preparing to defend themselves with HSM encryption today. Next-generation HSMs provide the ultimate defense in the war against cybercrime by encrypting data so it’s useless to attackers.
