Data Breaches Are the New Normal. Encryption Should Be, Too

Customers didn’t ask a lot of questions about security and encryption when David Petersen started working at O.C. Tanner seven years ago. The company develops cloud-based tools to help other companies design employee recognition and rewards programs. Petersen is director of infrastructure and systems at the 93-year-old firm, which started out making class rings and pins. The company’s changed a lot as it nears its centennial, and the security landscape has shifted significantly in the time that Peterson’s been with O.C. Tanner. “Clients have become more conscious of security and more aware of the threats, and they ask us for those protections including encryption,” Petersen said, adding that his customers’ sophistication around encryption technologies has also increased. “It used to be just: do you encrypt data? Check the box, yes or no. Not it’s what standard are you using? Are you using FIPS [Federal Information Processing Standard]-certified devices? The general trend is people are becoming more conscious and aware, and they have a real understanding of encryption.