Topics & Trends: Privacy in the Data Center

Data center security used to be easier to implement. In fact, there was a time when data center managers could see all the inputs and outputs to the mainframe in one or two rooms. New technology and constant market pressures have caused simple data center security to be a thing of the past.

While bad publicity and enforced legal requirements are pushing IT security agendas, consumer sentiment is also a major driver in the changing landscape of data privacy. Consumers are demanding stricter security, as increasing amounts of their Personally Identifiable Information (PII) is digitized and the staggering amount of data breaches grows to new heights.

According to many, 70% of all mission-critical data remains on the mainframe and much of that data relates to customer and consumer information. The rapid pace of today’s electronic business climate demands 24/7, “always-on” access to data. The mainframe, as the hub of enterprise data, feeds more PII to extended networks and platforms than ever before, thereby increasing the risks of compromising confidential consumer data.

A new PKWARE® whitepaper, “Spotlight on Mainframe Security: Privacy in the Data Center,”illustrates the encryption solutions available to protecting the confidentiality of data originating on mainframe systems and provides insight into securing that data as it is exchanged with unprotected external or shared networks.

This whitepaper is one of many PKWARE is authoring on the subject of mainframe data security. Visit www.pkware.com/mainframedatasecurity to view additional mainframe security whitepapers. Also, you can download a free 30-day trial of SecureZIP for z/OS to experience, firsthand, a data-centric solution that will protect the confidential data stored and transmitted in your mainframe environment.