http://enterprise-encryption.vormetric.com/EMAILPTNRESGWhitepaper.html Understand the importance of a long term enterprise encryption and key management strategy over the short term fix of an ad hoc encryption to address any data security concerns. This presentation is based on the whitepaper - Enterprise Encryption from Vormetric and ESG. Register to download the whitepaper: http://enterprise-encryption.vormetric.com/EMAILPTNRESGWhitepaper.html . CISOs and their peers realize that ad hoc encryption is no longer adequate: It leads to higher costs and increased risk. So, what's needed? An enterprise encryption and key management strategy that can extend across all sensitive data, in all formats, across the entire organization.

1. Enterprise Encryption and
Key Management Strategy
Enterprise Strategy Group
Enterprise Encryption and Key
Management Strategy
THE TIME IS NOW
Download ESG Whitepaper
Brief: Enterprise Encryption and Key Management Strategy from Vormetric and ESG

2. Enterprise Encryption and
Key Management Strategy
Enterprise Strategy Group
In the current data security environment, encryption is often touted as the grand cure-all. Simply
implement an encryption solution and your data security woes will be behind you. While encryption can
be a powerful tool in the data protection arsenal, assisting companies in achieving regulatory compliance
as well as offering a high degree of protection to sensitive data, it must be done in a strategic manner.
Encryption as it’s been adopted today is more often implemented as a point solution, rather than as a
foundational component of a strong risk management and data protection strategy.
This argument is the basis for a new whitepaper published by ESG.The paper, which is entitled
Enterprise Encryption and Key Management Strategy: The Time is Now, addresses the common failings of
encryption when used as a point solution rather than as a strategic component within a cohesive security
management program.
ESG analyst Jon Oltsik proposes that addressing encryption on an ad hoc basis can introduce significant
risk. Oltsik identifies a number of factors that can prevent organizations from maximizing the benefits of
encryption and key management.
Ad hoc Encryption:
Ad hoc implementations create a number of challenges that can dilute the benefit of encryption and
make key management quite difficult. For instance, ad hoc implementations can introduce encryption
based on competing standards.These heterogeneous ad hoc encryption and key management
implementations are difficult to manage and can increase the overhead involved in managing the varying
solutions and introduce a greater likelihood of data breach. In a similar vein, having numerous encryption
solutions means that the keys for each solution must each be managed within its native tool. In such an
instance, the increased likelihood of breach is accompanied by the increased likelihood of unrecoverable data.
Enterprise Encryption:
In response to these threats, Oltsik identifies a number of steps that organizations can take to ensure
maximum effectiveness from their encryption deployments. For instance, Olstik observes that encryption
is often deployed according to the needs and judgments of functional IT groups, rather than a central
data security organization. The result is often that encryption keys are available to many members of
the IT staff, which, of course, violates one of the central tenets of strong encryption – separation of duties.
Other requirements of a successful enterprise encryption strategy include:
• Tiered Administration – This allows organizations to set policies at both an organizational and a
departmental level.
• Distributed Policy Enforcement – Enforcing policies across distributed, heterogeneous systems
throughout the organization is paramount to the successful implementation of enterprise
encryption and key management.
Brief: Enterprise Encryption and Key Management Strategy from Vormetric and ESG

3. Enterprise Encryption and
Key Management Strategy
Enterprise Strategy Group
• Enterprise-level key management – Key management must become a central service for all
activities, including key creation, storage, rotation, and revocation.
• Central Command and Control – Consolidation of policy management, configuration
management, and reporting and auditing functions helps to ensure appropriate management of
encryption solutions across the enterprise.
The message of the paper is that encryption is not effective, and should not be implemented, as a tactical
response to a departmental need. Just as one wouldn’t build a house without a blueprint, organizations
should develop an enterprise encryption and key management plan to address their data security
requirements. Keeping the big picture in mind, and understanding how all of the parts will work together,
is central to establishing a solid data security foundation that will limit the risk of vulnerabilities and be
easier and more cost effective to manage.
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Brief: Enterprise Encryption and Key Management Strategy from Vormetric and ESG