Cryptography is now a mainstream answer to major
business security issues, according to research sponsored by
cryptography firm nCypher.
Nearly three-quarters of businesses are already using
cryptography, or are planning to use it within the next 18 months,
a survey of 237 security decision makers from enterprises around
the world has shown.
Businesses are using the technology for secure communications,
authentication of people or devices, remote connectivity,
protecting data integrity and protecting data at rest, the survey
by cryptography firm nCypher found.
The survey also highlighted the increasing number of
cryptographic keys in use, with 16% of respondents reporting that
there were more than 1,000 keys on their servers and 24% reporting
more than 1,000 keys on their desktops.
Another 9% of respondents had more than 10,000 keys on servers
with 11% saying they had more than 10,000 on desktops.
Richard Moulds, vice president marketing at nCipher, said, “The
survey suggests we are at a turning point for the widespread use of
cryptography within IT security. The greater use of encryption,
decryption, signing and authentication means that managing
cryptographic keys across the enterprise is becoming increasingly
complex and diverse.”
There was likely to be “significant growth” in the number of
cryptographic keys that need to be managed, he added.