When looking at technology adoption, I am frequently reminded of Pandora’s Box from Greek mythology. This metaphor rings true when considering the Internet of Things (IoT). Whereas Pandora released a host of evils into the world, with IoT we have released new concerns associated with multiple technologies, multiple standards, scale, and security (or as I like to say, resiliency). When considering the information that flows from the edge, through the cloud, and ultimately to the data center, the lowest common denominator for protecting information is trust created by cryptography (as noted by nCipher’s Juan Asenjo in the other half of this blog series). In this blog, we are going to start by acknowledging the pitfalls of our particular Pandora and then discuss how we find hope in the solution provided by nCipher and Fornetix.

Olympic high diving requires concentration and self-control. Before divers jump off a 10-meter platform, they pause at the edge and concentrate on their goal: elegantly perform the acrobatic maneuver and gracefully pierce the water causing minimum surface disturbance. This same disciplined approach is required when adopting new and revolutionary technologies, such as those now available through the Internet of Things (IoT). Decision makers must assess the risks and benefits, consider potential difficulties, and then take the jump.

Ariel Mahlmann is a sales and marketing intern with Fornetix. A recent University of Maryland graduate with a bachelor’s in economics, Ariel focuses on cyber security market research and social media marketing for Fornetix.

Implementing an encryption strategy comes with hefty baggage, but don't worry; we've got you covered. In this post, we'll cover the top four challenges of managing encryption and solutions to overcome them. 

Encryption key management is increasingly more important the more connected we become. With millions of devices and millions of users, there becomes an increasing need for effective cybersecurity tools that safeguard sensitive assets for individuals and organizations.

The demand for connected devices is growing exponentially, but the technology to secure these devices is lagging creating cyber security vulnerabilities at a massive scale.

The Current State of Cyber Security

Every day we hear about breaches, hacks, and cyber-attacks affecting banks, hospitals, transportation, and even entire cities. In some instances, the impact can mean life or death. Our most trusted institutions – like the US election process – are not the pillars of security they once were. And yet the demand for “connected everything” continues to grow in all sectors and across the globe.

Our Chief Technology Officer at Fornetix, Chuck White, sat down with Professor Andre Hinton from the New Cyber Frontier podcast to explore the ways powerful encryption can solve the big problems of cybersecurity. Take a listen using the audio player below!

When looking at the problems we were trying to solve with Key Orchestration, IoT and IoE have always been part of the grand vision of Orchestration. As more and more systems break down the concept of perimeters or layers, there is a need to address the realities of these changes.

Along with the rest of the industry, we recently attended the RSA Conference in San Francisco. While there, many conversations about Fornetix Key Orchestration (KO) started with “You’re an HSM?” or “I already have an HSM… why do I need a key manager?”  Key managers have very clear differences from Hardware Security Modules (HSMs.)  The main differences reside in how the encryption keys can be used by a Key Manager or HSM.  There are other more important differentiators, however, let’s start with how key managers leverage open standards, like the Key Management Interoperability Protocol (KMIP), and what exactly an HSM is.

FULTON, Maryland, July 25, 2017 — Today, RackTop Systems announced the immediate availability of its advanced secure encryption service with support for external cryptographic key management powered by Fornetix® Key Orchestration™. The enhancement enables organizations to meet strict data-at-rest encryption requirements while providing effortless, unified management of encryption keys. RackTop's advanced encryption service maintains the highest level of protection by eliminating any human interaction or knowledge of keys, pins, or passwords.

What is interoperability and how did it get started? The idea of interoperability was born in the world of manufacturing. If you think back to before the industrial revolution, machines and inventions were created as one-off systems.