A quick Google of the Internet will show scores of articles that purport the advantages and benefits of using secure data rooms to protect your confidential documents. But is this true or merely just hype? If you dig a little deeper, almost every article is sponsored by a secure data room provider. That goes to show, you may not get an accurate picture of how data rooms operate and what they do with your confidential documents. Let’s look at behind the scenes to show you how secure data rooms are not all that secure and why they could be misleading you over protecting your valuable data. Why Document DRM solutions are a superior choice over secure data room systems.
What ‘security’ means in a secure data room
At the end of the day, it’s all about sales. So whether you’re looking at the features and characteristics of software or hardware. It needs to have marketable content that will induce sales. Similarly, when it comes to secure data rooms, it depends on the kind of security you’re looking for. But, more notably, you also need to comprehend what elements within the entire data room system is regarded as secure to label it as a secure unit.
In the case of securing confidential data, one important question you need to inquire from a data room provider is whether the data room system stops users from sharing the documents. If you look closely and press for a genuine answer, you will receive a resounding no. That’s because, in secure data rooms, authorized users can reveal their login credentials to other users who are unauthorized to access the documents in the data room. Thus, with the login credentials of an authorized user, any individual can gain access to your classified information stored in a ‘secure’ data room.
Sifting behind the terminology
Almost every data room provider makes a big point about the robust security features of their data server system. For instance, if you go through some of the websites and brochures of popular data room providers, you will likely see terms such as ‘bank-grade security’, ‘highly secure data room’, ‘best virtual data room provider’, and so on. But all these marketing terms are utterly useless when it comes to securing the confidentiality of your valuable information.
You may also see data room providers publishing their security credentials and certifications online to display their levels of security. But the most vital characteristic to consider is once your valuable information is stored in a secure data room. And can non-authorized users access it through the credentials of an authorized user? Do any of the security terminologies mentioned earlier eliminate or prevent such a security threat? Unfortunately, no.
Therefore, all the crafty claims made by secure data room providers are created to make you believe that their data rooms are protected when in truth, they are not. Many systems only provide copy protection by displaying documents as images rather than text. So the user cannot highlight and copy anything. Expiry controls rely on mechanisms. Such as JavaScript to enforce them. But what happens if users can turn off JavaScript or edit it in their browser? Similarly, if printing is allowed, users can print to PDF files that have no security applied to them.
Why secure data rooms are problematic
When you have classified information you need to safeguard. And would it make sense to upload it onto a server which you do not control? Besides, any storage facility that relies on login credentials can never be wholly secure. The objective of employing a secure data room is to ensure that your confidential and sensitive information is securely shared. But if users can share their login credentials with unauthorized users, the purpose of storing them in the data room is defeated.
DRM solutions: The only answer to safely securing your confidential data
Digital rights management locks your PDF documents only to authorized devices. So that they will not open if copied to another device. It provides you with actual secure document protection and sharing. Ensuring that your data files can only be accessed by those you authorize. With PDF DRM systems that use licensing controls, there are no passwords for users to enter or share. DRM also prevents screen grabbing, copying, pasting, and printing. And enables you to add dynamic watermarks that PDF editing software cannot remove. Most importantly, users do not have login credentials to enter. Hence, these cannot be shared with other users-decryption keys are managed transparently and securely without the intervention of the authorized user.
Document DRM solutions are a superior choice over secure data room systems due to the extensive range of copy protection controls that persist for both online and offline documents. They provide you with the ability to protect your documents and control devices and locations users can access them from.
Conclusion
To securely share confidential, classified and sensitive information, you require data security tools that cannot be easily circumvented. DRM solutions are proven and simple way to protect your documents from unauthorized sharing and leakage regardless of their location. To eliminate risk, enhance efficiency and safeguard your classified information, use DRM to protect your documents.
