Vital IT Knowledge: Implementing Secure SFTP Service

Partnering with an SFTP service provider for your business will unlock a huge range of different benefits that can't be ignored. You can now enjoy all of the productivity and collaborative benefits of file sharing with as few of the downsides as possible, particularly when it comes to security.

Implementing an SFTP service provider isn't as simple as switching on a light, however, and there are a few important things that your IT department absolutely must know about before you move forward.

Business Automation

Business automation is becoming an increasingly important part of business as a time-saving measure alone. It's also something that you definitely want to make sure that your SFTP service provider supports. Business automation brings with it the benefit of heightened productivity in a number of different ways.

In the world of SFTP file sharing, when we speak about automation we are speaking about using custom scripts, batch files or schedulers to facilitate unattended transfers. A SFTP service provider that fully supports such automated file transfer allows for things like data synchronization between business partners.

Data-at-Rest Encryption

Another important thing that you'll want to verify before choosing an SFTP service provider has to do with the concept of data-at-rest encryption. Encryption in general essentially "scrambles" information, making sure that it cannot be read without the appropriate key. Most providers offer data-in-transit encryption, meaning that a file is completely encrypted while it is being uploaded to or downloaded from the server.

But what happens when your files are just sitting there unused (resting), as they will be for the majority of the time? That is what data-at-rest encryption was designed for. Without it, anyone who gains illicit access to your SFTP server could have access to the content within your data files.

DLP Functionality

DLP stands for "data loss prevention," which is a key feature that your SFTP service provider should support. As its name suggests, data loss prevention and similar features are designed to extend across all of your files that are at a "high risk" for certain types of loss. Not only will support for DLP prevent you from losing sensitive information due to things like hardware failures or user error, but in some industries it is actually required by law. DLP functionality is required in the healthcare industry (by HIPAA) for any company engaging in file sharing. Failure to support this type of feature doesn't just put your business at risk - it puts you at risk of severe compliance issues, as well.