data protection

Encrypting files: What kind of information should your company protect?

June 12, 2019 by HushApp Team

Every time it becomes more common to hear that a company must pay a fine for not complying with data protection regulations in Europe in particular, the GDPR has become one of the major concerns of organizations. It is clear that data should be protected, the question is, what should we protect? And also, why encrypting files is the best way to protect your company?

Frauds, phishing, cyber attacks, data leaks, malware, among others, are terms that are becoming increasingly common; they are attacks to which any company or person is exposed to suffer at any time. To understand the consequences of this type of attack, you have to understand the causes of the problem, the information that the company deals with and how it is handled.

Personal data and privacy

Although it is not the only information that a company should protect, it can be considered the most valuable and at the same time vulnerable data that an organization manages. It is about everything that concerns the identity of a person, whether public or private, and each one decides whether it can be shared or not.

Everything that refers to personal data such as: contact data, physical characteristics, data related to your assets, biometric information, professional training, including ideological information, sexual life or ethnic origin, among others, refers to information that if reach the wrong hands, It could affect their reputation or safety.

It is not only about personal information but also about confidential information of the company that is also susceptible to a security breach and could cause serious financial problems.

What should be done with the information obtained?

It is the responsibility of the company to safeguard the integrity of the people from whom it handles such information. This refers to any type of action taken with these data: the way it is collected, processed, stored, transferred or even destroyed.

Therefore, the procedure should be:

Know the type of information handled.
Classify it according to its value, if it should be public, private and above all, who will have access or not.
Identify which are the possible threats and the possible consequences.
Apply the necessary tools for the protection of information, especially the most confidential one. In this step is where encrypting files is useful.

Encrypting files: Classification and examples of information that must be protected

Some examples of information that must be protected with encryption systems can be:

– Company files: sensitive data for the company such as business secrets, bank documents, including passwords that give access to confidential documents, corporate devices, credit cards, market studies, etc.

In the case of personal files could involve employees, customers or any other person related to the company. Some examples include:

– Employee files: personal data of employees (such as those mentioned above), identification documents, medical reports, etc.

– Client files: Identification documents, payment data, contact data, among others.

In the case of clients, it is important to understand the obligation to protect the data they are offering and should be used only for the purpose they decided. Therefore, if you are requesting a client’s email to subscribe to the company’s newsletter, it should be used only for that and not for other purposes. For example, to promote other products of another company, since this can be sanctioned in many countries.

Why encrypt the files?

Encrypting your files can be one of the best options to protect the sensitive information of a company. Nowadays, the most used and effective method to protect your data is an encryption system, in which you can secure that information is completely protected.

It is important to highlight the level of security offered by an encryption system. It is a much more powerful tool than a password since they only protect access. Encryption protects data directly, making it impossible to see the contents of files.

Encrypting files easily with HushApp

To comply with all data protection regulations that each country requires, it is important to use the appropriate security tools.

That’s why we introduce you the HushApp. It is a safe alternative to other file submission services, since it facilitates the daily protection of company data and helps safeguard your customer’s sensitive information.

How? Implementing high-level encryption methods in a simple and transparent way for the user without affecting the efficiency of business processes. Security, usability and a good user experience are all our priorities.

Using HushApp you will have the opportunity to offer additional value to your customers, protect your own confidential information and allow your work team to perform easily and safely actions.

We invite to try HushApp …

How to protect your privacy from spies in electronic devices

February 20, 2019 by HushApp Team

When we talk about spies you probably think about typical movie characters who take photos secretly from afar, but the reality is different. Spies can be very close to you, in your electronic devices which you use daily. The internet of things has come to solve many of our day-to-day activities, the problem is that any device connected to the Internet, no matter how harmless it may seem, can be an open window to access your information. So, how to protect your privacy from spies? protecting your information does not only have to do with installing an antivirus on your computer or mobile when even your smart refrigerator could also be vulnerable to a data leak.

It’s not just about protecting your information from potential hackers or cybercriminals, but from companies that want to obtain your data and then offer you products in a personalized way, without your consent.

Televisions, refrigerators, lamps, thermostats, voice assistants such as Alexa or Siri, and an endless number of appliances that need to be connected to the Internet, collect your personal information, use cameras or information from your home to work properly.

Tips to protect your privacy in technology and on the internet

Let’s start with the basics: it is essential to read the terms and conditions of each service that we use, although they may seem long and incomprehensible, it is the only way to know what type of data the device collects and how it uses it.
The most common victim of a spy is on mobile devices, through Spyware, but do not worry, there are always ways to control them, and here you can know how.
If it is about spies, we can not leave out the ability of Google services to make you feel spied on. Here you can read how to control the access they have to your information and continue to use them.
Generally, at home, we have a router to provide a connection to all the devices you have connected and which are in use. This means that if it is not well protected, this could be the first access to the information stored by ALL your devices. So the first device to protect your privacy is your router.
The voice assistants are those that have caused more controversy, due to their powerful sensors and the capacity they have to listen and keep information since they are always in search of a command that orders some action. Therefore it is important to deactivate that constant listening and activate it only when necessary.
The vast majority of these devices allow you to erase the data that you have been storing. In the case of Google, for example, your devices and applications have an activity page that allows you to delete them, as well as to register what interests you. That will make it possible for you to eliminate clues about your actions on these devices.
Although we know that the only way that these devices are 100% secure and that they can not be accessed, is that they are disconnected from the Internet, but in this way, it does not make sense to use them. However, it is not necessary to connect every application the device has, all applications can be connected at the time of use, or only the applications or accessories needed or most used.
You can add some of the firewalls created especially for the internet of things, these are small devices designed so that everyone who is connected can protect themselves from cyber attacks.
Do not forget, of course, the need to protect our devices such as: mobiles, computers or tablets, which have a greater capacity to store data, either with their respective antivirus, using VPNs to connect or protecting your files in applications like HushApp that allow you to store and send your files easily and safely.

It is not necessary to go back to the past and reuse the old devices and home appliances to protect your privacy, there are ways to take advantage of the technology by using them in a responsible and safe way.

Today’s Big Thing, “Big Data”: What You Need to Know

December 17, 2018 by HushApp Team

We invite you to read Hogan Injury’s post, our special guests:

It is projected that by 2020, 1.7 megabytes of data will be generated for every person in the world, every single second; and the proportion of data that needs to be protected is growing faster than the digital universe itself. All the data coming in large volumes from different places is called Big Data.

Big data basically means sets of structured or unstructured data whose volumes are so large and so complex that traditional data processing software cannot process them within a reasonable amount of time. The information mined from these sets are then analyzed and put to good use. Big data involves more than just the volume and complexity of data, however. Doug Laney laid out the definition of big data in 3 V’s.

Volume: Data is collected from everyone, everywhere. From social media activity to online shopping, data can be farmed from everywhere.

Velocity: The speed at which data streams in near-real time thanks to RFID tags, sensors, and smart metering.

Variety: Big data comes in different formats—emails, texts, videos, forms, business transactions, etc.

Some real world uses for big data include:

Retail organizations and commercial companies monitor social media activities to find out emerging trends in the market. This way, they can ride the trend and start selling things people are clamoring for at that point in time.
Financial organizations analyze data from their clients to organize them into different groups. This categorizing results in more optimized programs that can better serve the needs of their clients. Data analyzed from their clients’ activities could also help detect fraud.
Hospitals analyze patient data to foresee which patients would most likely be readmitted and plan treatment programs that will prevent the patients from needing to be readmitted.
Industrial companies use machines that gather data that allows them to figure out when a certain machine would need upkeep or replacement.

Data extracted from big data can be very helpful in a lot of ways for many people and organizations. However, as a now famous fictional uncle once told his nephew, “with great power comes great responsibility.” There are two major considerations when trying to build a business around big data. One is data ownership — who has the rights to an individual person’s data and what rights do the government, financial, commercial or health institutions have to them.

The other is data protection. Once an institution or business has access to their clients’ data, how do they protect the private information that go through their systems on a daily basis?

With the scandal of data leaked or sold by such a large social media company as Facebook, more and more people are becoming aware of the dangers of leaving their personal data unprotected. Realizing that something as innocuous as answering online quizzes could actually be used for data mining is somewhat worrying.

Having a good grasp of the legal implications of going into big data is very important. Big data is still an emerging and growing market. If you have any concerns about the legality of anyone, be it an individual or an institution, using and keeping personal data, it is best to get in touch with a lawyer that understand the legalities surrounding data rights, privacy, and protection.

Original text here