Add a New Tool to Your Offerings as a Partner with Encryption

A mechanic who only has one size of wrench is not likely to get very much done, and he’s not going to get much business either. The more services he can perform–or, in other words, the more problems he can solve for his customers–the better off his business will be. Channel partners obviously know this, just as they are aware that we’re seeing rapid evolution in the technology businesses are adopting. And with every new piece of equipment or software, the need to protect the business and its intellectual property is increasing. It’s advantageous to offer customers as many benefits as possible to succeed in the market.

One of the areas businesses–and consequently partners–hesitate to take advantage of in terms of security, however, is encryption. And there’s certainly precedent for that, given how in the past encryption was synonymous with slower systems and complicated user interfaces. But the hallmark of so much technology today is that it works behind the scenes to provide functionality without draining resources. Partners shouldn’t view encryption as a mysterious, cumbersome tool that is of little use. They should view it as an essential part of any comprehensive security strategy. Here are three reasons channel partners should add encryption to their toolbox of offerings:

1. With so much information being stored in clouds – both private and public clouds, applications and on mobile devices – there are more opportunities than ever for that information to be lost or intercepted by third parties. And targeted attacks aimed at accessing and exploiting sensitive information continue to remain constant and pervasive. Even one lost or stolen smartphone can expose a large amount of confidential information, causing significant damage to the business if access to that information is not limited. However, these are not issues that organizations can deal with by saying “no”–they urgently need solutions to help secure confidential data and limit access. To help address this issue, Symantec recently announced its vision of safe, ubiquitous cloud functionality in the coming years, with encryption playing a central role in making this technology work seamlessly and securely.
2. It’s easier than ever to use encryption. With Symantec Encryption solutions, businesses can take advantage of endpoint, email and file encryption, keeping data safe wherever it is stored or accessed. New features give organizations the ability to automatically encrypt all files that their users store on Dropbox and give users the convenience of accessing encrypted Dropbox files from their iPhone and iPad, along with the ability to protect confidential email data on mobile devices. Symantec Encryption solutions also provide centralized policy management, accurate compliance-based reporting and true universal management of encryption products.
3. The most compelling reason for companies to leverage encryption technology is its ability to minimize the effects of human error. Sooner or later an employee will save a file where it should not be stored, or lose a laptop. Encryption provides a proactive method of addressing these issues before they occur, allowing organizations to maintain a high security posture regardless of their employee’s actions.

Moving forward, businesses will need to secure more information in more places, and encryption is a key technology making that possible. We suggest partners begin to familiarize themselves with the encryption technology and products, particularly as we move toward a future of seamless mobility and constant availability of information in the cloud. This evolution in the market presents an ideal opportunity for partners to grow their own business while helping their customers evolve their IT environments.

John Eldh is VP, channel sales, Americas, at Symantec Corp. Monthly guest blogs such as this one are part of Talkin’ Cloud’s annual platinum sponsorship.