Simplifying Application-Layer Encryption for Frictionless Compliance
Your employees aren’t the only ones who need access to sensitive data. Your applications and workflows do, too. This is where many encryption strategies fall apart. Data is secure, but when an application needs to use encrypted data, processes fail, and there are periods where unencrypted data is written to disk. Application-layer encryption solves this by allowing applications and workflows to interact with encrypted files.
An SDK (software development kit) makes this seamless. This pre-written code, delivered as an application library, embeds encryption and decryption functions into another application.
Why Embed Encryption in Applications?
Organizations rely on internal applications, automated workflows, and scripts to read, import, and process sensitive files. When those files are encrypted, applications and workflows still need access to the underlying data to function correctly. When applications can’t access the necessary information, workflows break, and organizations often take risky workarounds.
Per compliance rules, encryption must be constant. You can avoid disruptions and adhere to mandates by embedding encryption and decryption within applications and workflows. Encryption stays at the data or file level, and you remain compliant.
Traditional Encryption Nullifies Protection
A common process for allowing applications access to sensitive data without an SDK looks like this:
- Data decryption occurs.
- Applications consume the data.
- Re-encryption happens.
This defeats the purpose of data encryption. There is a time in the workflow where data has no protection. When unencrypted data is written to disk, even briefly, it places organizations out of compliance since regulations require encryption at rest and in motion.
The “motion” part is more complex and often dictates that encryption be in place at the file level. An effective compliance workflow solution eliminates friction and maintains adherence to regulations that require persistent encryption. When encryption and decryption occur just before an application accesses the data, sensitive information remains protected at all times, with no window of exposure.
Compliance Use Cases
Let’s review some examples related to compliance. These scenarios illustrate how applications need to consume sensitive data while maintaining compliance.
GLBA and BitLocker Gaps
BitLocker is a common disk-level encryption solution. However, because it only protects data at rest, it doesn’t secure data throughout its entire lifecycle. As a result, BitLocker alone is insufficient to achieve GLBA compliance.
One of our customers needed to meet GLBA requirements for encrypting data both at rest and in motion. Transaction log files moving from point of sale (POS) systems to their IBM i environment were unencrypted in transit, leaving them out of compliance. Their current BitLocker solution couldn’t protect files as they moved across systems or platforms.
SDK with embedded application encryption provides a compliance workflow solution that encrypts transaction logs at creation. When data moves to the AS400 platform, the encryption remains. Decryption occurs at the moment of use within IBM i, and then re-encryption occurs. This ensures the data never sits unencrypted on disk during processing and remains protected end-to-end.
PCI Compliance: Check Scanning
Another PKWARE customer leverages SDK to support PCI compliance related to digital check deposit workflows. Like most banks, this customer provides mobile banking apps that allow customers to scan checks for deposit. Their system encrypts check image files as it processes them across systems.
Internal applications must access the underlying data to complete transaction processing and validations. Without SDK, the customer would have to decrypt files to disk so applications could consume the data. This would undermine security and compliance.
Instead, by embedding SDK into internal applications, the customer decrypts data in stream, processes it, and keeps it encrypted throughout the rest of its lifecycle. This is critical for compliance and ensures that sensitive data doesn’t exist unencrypted on servers.
An Integrated Compliance Workflow Solution
Encryption should enable compliance while supporting business workflows rather than blocking them. PK Protect Endpoint Manager (PEM)’s SDK integrates compliance into applications and workflows without disruption. It allows applications to securely access encrypted files without breaking processes or introducing compliance risk.
Persistent encryption is available across your enterprise, on desktops, servers, file shares, applications, workflows, and disparate platforms, including Windows, MacOS, Linux, UNIX, and IBM i. Encryption remains whether data is at rest or in transit.
Transition to friction-free compliance with PEM. It’s simple, efficient, and usable in many environments.
Your employees aren’t the only ones who need access to sensitive data. Your applications and workflows do, too. This is where many encryption strategies fall apart. Data is secure, but when an application needs to use encrypted data, processes fail, and there are periods where unencrypted data is written to disk. Application-layer encryption solves this by allowing applications and workflows to interact with encrypted files.
An SDK (software development kit) makes this seamless. This pre-written code, delivered as an application library, embeds encryption and decryption functions into another application.
Why Embed Encryption in Applications?
Organizations rely on internal applications, automated workflows, and scripts to read, import, and process sensitive files. When those files are encrypted, applications and workflows still need access to the underlying data to function correctly. When applications can’t access the necessary information, workflows break, and organizations often take risky workarounds.
Per compliance rules, encryption must be constant. You can avoid disruptions and adhere to mandates by embedding encryption and decryption within applications and workflows. Encryption stays at the data or file level, and you remain compliant.
Traditional Encryption Nullifies Protection
A common process for allowing applications access to sensitive data without an SDK looks like this:
- Data decryption occurs.
- Applications consume the data.
- Re-encryption happens.
This defeats the purpose of data encryption. There is a time in the workflow where data has no protection. When unencrypted data is written to disk, even briefly, it places organizations out of compliance since regulations require encryption at rest and in motion.
The “motion” part is more complex and often dictates that encryption be in place at the file level. An effective compliance workflow solution eliminates friction and maintains adherence to regulations that require persistent encryption. When encryption and decryption occur just before an application accesses the data, sensitive information remains protected at all times, with no window of exposure.
Compliance Use Cases
Let’s review some examples related to compliance. These scenarios illustrate how applications need to consume sensitive data while maintaining compliance.
GLBA and BitLocker Gaps
BitLocker is a common disk-level encryption solution. However, because it only protects data at rest, it doesn’t secure data throughout its entire lifecycle. As a result, BitLocker alone is insufficient to achieve GLBA compliance.
One of our customers needed to meet GLBA requirements for encrypting data both at rest and in motion. Transaction log files moving from point of sale (POS) systems to their IBM i environment were unencrypted in transit, leaving them out of compliance. Their current BitLocker solution couldn’t protect files as they moved across systems or platforms.
SDK with embedded application encryption provides a compliance workflow solution that encrypts transaction logs at creation. When data moves to the AS400 platform, the encryption remains. Decryption occurs at the moment of use within IBM i, and then re-encryption occurs. This ensures the data never sits unencrypted on disk during processing and remains protected end-to-end.
PCI Compliance: Check Scanning
Another PKWARE customer leverages SDK to support PCI compliance related to digital check deposit workflows. Like most banks, this customer provides mobile banking apps that allow customers to scan checks for deposit. Their system encrypts check image files as it processes them across systems.
Internal applications must access the underlying data to complete transaction processing and validations. Without SDK, the customer would have to decrypt files to disk so applications could consume the data. This would undermine security and compliance.
Instead, by embedding SDK into internal applications, the customer decrypts data in stream, processes it, and keeps it encrypted throughout the rest of its lifecycle. This is critical for compliance and ensures that sensitive data doesn’t exist unencrypted on servers.
An Integrated Compliance Workflow Solution
Encryption should enable compliance while supporting business workflows rather than blocking them. PK Protect Endpoint Manager (PEM)’s SDK integrates compliance into applications and workflows without disruption. It allows applications to securely access encrypted files without breaking processes or introducing compliance risk.
Persistent encryption is available across your enterprise, on desktops, servers, file shares, applications, workflows, and disparate platforms, including Windows, MacOS, Linux, UNIX, and IBM i. Encryption remains whether data is at rest or in transit.
Transition to friction-free compliance with PEM. It’s simple, efficient, and usable in many environments.
