A year after rolling out its Shield cloud services, Salesforce.Com, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) has introduced “Bring your own key” (BYOK) encryption.
Salesforce Shield is a platform encryption service that the company integrated into its metadata platform. It allows clients to encrypt data while still maintaining validation rules, search, and workflows. Prior to the launch of the new functionality, the company encrypted the key to the platform. BYOK as the name suggests lets users create their own key for the encryption service outside Salesforce meaning there is more security and exclusivity within the platform and it is decentralized. This is a significant move for the company considering malicious attacks have become a growing concern in the digital world. The introduction of new security features is, therefore, a welcome relief for companies.
The aim of the BYOK platform encryption service is to make it easier for companies that are in highly regulated industries to shift to cloud technology. Salesforce stated that its aim with the new service is to help firms that have a hard time getting the most out of cloud technology due to regulatory requirements. The service targets companies within the life sciences and healthcare fields.
Forrester Research, Inc. (NASDAQ:FORR) VP John Kindervag stated that BYOK encryption is important because it will grant clients the freedom to control their own key content. Kindervag also pointed out that the system will benefit any firm that deals with sensitive data which if leaked, can be troublesome. The VP also noted that the feature might also be used as a tool to address data sovereignty concerns since it will be easier to encrypt data and at the same time manage the encryption.
Kindervag also stated that individuals and companies will eventually realize that setting up data centers in different countries is not the answer for solving the sovereignty problem. The BYOK feature is currently in its pilot stage and is expected to be available later this year. Additionally, it will be available with the Salesforce Shield platform encryption module at no extra cost.