End-to-End Encryption: The Enterprise Collaboration Must Have Essential for 2021 and Beyond
As the pandemic continues to reshape working norms and accelerate the digitization of enterprises, end-to-end encryption (E2EE) has vaulted to the top of must have features for enterprise collaboration platforms. E2EE has become EE2EE (Essential End-to-End Encryption) for companies navigating the pandemic driven surge in remote working and increasing adoption of cloud-based applications. These two here-to-stay trends are transitioning E2EE from a nice-to-have feature to a business essential vital to securing enterprise communication and collaboration.
Cloudy with a chance of cyber disturbance
Enterprise adoption of cloud-based applications, on the upswing prior to pandemic, accelerated during the pandemic to support business continuity and a more distributed workforce. This growing adoption of cloud-based applications makes E2EE fundamental to securing corporate data within these applications.
A 2020 IDG Cloud Computing Survey revealed that 52% of information technology decision makers rank collaboration and communication solutions high in the “currently migrating/deployed in the cloud” category. IDG attributed the strong cloud computing adoption curve to the agility and scalability of cloud-based applications “especially during a time where cloud-based collaboration tools are essential for a successful remote work environment.”
The growth of cloud-based collaboration solutions and other cloud applications shows no sign of slowing down. In fact, IDC projected that “by the end of 2021, based on lessons learned in the pandemic, most enterprises will put a mechanism in place to accelerate their shift to cloud-centric digital infrastructure and application services twice as fast as before the pandemic."
As adoption of cloud-based application grows, so too does the amount of potentially vulnerable data managed in the cloud. Without E2EE, cloud-based applications can expose companies to cyber threats that can cause massive financial and reputational harm.
These cyber threats are something that keep IT professionals up at night. A KPMG study found that IT professionals are “3X more concerned about the security of company financials and intellectual property than their home security.” Further, a 451 Research Voice of the Enterprise: Information Security, Organizational Dynamics 2020 survey “shows that most IT decision-makers are concerned about the security risks in enterprise collaboration tools. Survey results show that nearly three out of four (74%) respondents are somewhat (52%) or very concerned (22%) about the level of security in the collaboration tools that remote workers are currently using.”
E2EE such as that built into NetSfere’s real-time collaboration platform is not only essential for securing cloud-based collaboration tools, it is the only way to ensure cloud data is totally secure.
NetSfere was built from the ground up for the enterprise with a focus on security, encryption and enterprise control. Popular consumer-built messaging apps like Slack, Skype and WhatsApp which set the standard for mobile communications features were never built with enterprise-security and control in mind. NetSfere’s robust collaboration platform provides enterprises with the tools they need to optimize workforce productivity without compromising on security.
While the work is remote – cyberthreats are not
The pandemic brought about remote working at scale and this shift in working paradigms escalated cybersecurity risks for enterprises. The rapid transition to remote working expanded attack surfaces and created new opportunities for cyber criminals.
The privacy and security challenges associated with remote working will be a continuing reality for companies as the number of remote workers in the next five years is expected to be nearly double what it was before COVID-19. According to Upwork, by 2025, 36.2 million Americans will be remote, an increase of 16.8 million people from pre-pandemic rates.
The rise in remote working and associated new threat vectors is creating a business imperative for secure collaboration. Raul Castanon-Martinez, Senior Analyst for Workforce Collaboration at 451 Research noted that supporting a distributed workforce will be a key driver for secure collaboration and that “features such as end-to-end encryption becoming a ‘must have’ rather than ‘nice to have.’” He also noted that this “represents an important opportunity for secure communications apps, which will experience a surge in demand from organizations looking to securely support a distributed workforce.”
NetSfere is the solution enterprises need to support a secure and compliant remote working environment. NetSfere provides the essential E2EE needed to secure data while enhancing team collaboration and driving workplace productivity through a more contextual, seamless communications experience with voice, video and text messaging.
Contact us today to learn how NetSfere can ensure your business has all the essential features to facilitate communication and collaboration while maintaining security, control and regulatory compliance.