What is encryption?
Encryption is primarily used to safeguard the contents of a message so that only the intended recipient can read it. This is done by replacing the contents with unrecognizable data, which could be understood only by the intended recipient. This is how encryption became a method to protect data from those who might want to steal it.
Encryption can be used in two situations:
- Encryption in Transit
- Encryption at Rest (EAR)
Encryption in Transit
This refers to data that is encrypted when it is in transit — including from your browser to the web server and other third parties via integrations. Encrypting data in transit protects your data from man-in-the-middle-attacks.
Encryption at Rest
This refers to data that is encrypted when it is stored (not moving) — either on a disc, in a database, or some other form of media. In addition to encryption of data during transit, encryption of data when it is stored in the servers provides an even higher level of security. EAR protects against any possible data leak due to server compromise or unauthorized access.
Encryption is done at the application layer using the AES-256 algorithm, which is a symmetric encryption algorithm and uses 128-bit blocks and 256-bit keys. The key used to convert the data from plain text to cipher text is called Data Encryption Key (DEK). The DEK is further encrypted using the KEK (Key Encryption Key), providing yet another layer of security. The keys are generated and maintained by our in-house Key Management Service(KMS).
What Data we encrypt in Zoho Connect?
The following data is encrypted in Zoho Connect: Contents of Feeds, Forum posts, Articles, Town Hall sessions, Groups, Announcements, Files, Channels, Survey results, and Tasks including comments, video files, and attachments. In custom apps, data in the form fields that have encryption enabled or labeled as ePHI are encrypted.
Data in the user profile is also encrypted. Network admins can mark the user profile fields that might contain any protected health information (ePHI) as 'personal information' for additional security. Learn more about
encrypting personal information in user profile. Full-disk Encryption
In addition to application-layer encryption, we use Self-Encrypting Drives (SEDs) to provide hardware-based full-disk encryption in India (IN), Australia (AU), Europe (EU), and Japan (JP) data centers. For the United States (US) and China (CN) data centers software-based disk encryption methods are used.