Next to protecting your data with a disaster recovery plan and routine procedure there is no higher priority than computer and network security. We are experts in securing your data whether it is located on a hard disk or it is in transit over a network between computers. Data encryption on hard disks is a critical element of data security. If the data on a hard drive is not encrypted then anyone that has possession of that equipment can access the data on the disk ... unless it's encrypted. Consider this. If you replace a computer what do you do with the old one? Do you throw it away, hopefully through a recycler? If you do then you probably have given access to your data to total strangers. You may think that you can delete the files before you discard the old computer. That is not an effective method of removing data from a hard drive. Deleted files can be restored. Even if the hard drive is broken there is a good chance that data can be retrieved from the equipment. Confidential data about your business, your finances, your employees, your clients are all available to anyone who has possession of the discarded and even broken hard drive. That is why you need to encrypt the data on your hard drive. We recommend the use of True Crypt software to encrypt your data. True Crypt is an open source product that uses the latest encryption algorithms and techniques. True Crypt is probably safer than the Encrypted File System that may have come with your operating system. True Crypt is free of charge.

Data is not only vulnerable on your hard drive. You must also encrypt your data backups. There are numerous stories about how corporations have lost data backup media in transit from the business site to the off site storage facility. Encrypting your backups means that even if you lose the medium used to store the data backup your data is still safe from being viewed by unauthorized people. You don't want to be the source of your clients' credit card information falling into the wrong hands. You don't want to fail to meet your legal requirements for employee information as described by the HIPPA regulation. You don't want your law or medical practice to be the source of client or patient information being make public. Encrypt your data backups. You'll be glad you did if you ever misplace a data backup.

Data can also be intercepted without your knowledge when it is in transit over computer networks. Whether your network is completely confined to your office or if you use the Internet to do business data can fall into the wrong hands when it is transmitted over a network. We can show you how to use encryption for email, file transfers, and remote system administration to increase the security of your confidential information.

Once again we recommend the use of open source software to implement your data security needs. You can achieve all of the security goals listed above using open source software that is free of charge. We have found that many commercial applications in the area of data security are just repackaged open source products. Why pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for a commercial application when you can achieve the same or higher level of security using open source products?