w w w . onlinet h era p y instit u te . com
use. It can be as easy as: type email, click send. The pickle is that innovators in commerce sometimes like to make things more difficult than they have to be in order to create the impression of greater value. Large corporations purchase solutions costing hundreds of thousands of dollars, solutions that require a team of IT administrators to implement, configure and maintain. All of that presumably makes these solutions more effective. But in truth the more complicated something is, than weaker it can be. The more dependent it is on human effort, the more vulnerable it is to human error. The key to effectiveness is to source practical solutions that are both affordable, and don’t require a degree in computer science to operate. For too long a time now encryption technology has been largely out of reach of the average person, reserved for corporations who can afford the high price tags, and technologists who knew how to navigate it. This effectively snatched the craft from our hands, warping it into something alien and daunting. Circling back, today we have the ability to reverse this conditioning and embrace it as
a useful tool, a practical method for safeguarding ourselves and our business on the internet. We fear that which we don’t understand, but rest assured that if you understand the concept of locking a door, you understand encryption. So next time you send out an email, put it in an armored truck before sending it out into the Wild West. It will still pass through all the same hands as an unsecured one, and be susceptible to the same interception, but the envelope won’t be penetrable. It will still be stored in as many places as an unsecured email but its contents won’t be betrayed. Take control and take precaution. Be your own advocate, because no one has the same interest in protecting your information, your business, and your worth, as you do. n
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Kasia Zukowska is based in Vancouver, BC and has over 12 years of experience working with communications technology and information security in a variety of capacities, most notably as liaison to customers ranging from SMB (small to medium sized businesses) to Fortune 500 companies. A co-founder of eCrypt Technologies, and a proponent of privacy, she believes strongly that all people, regardless of their economic status, place in society, or aptitude with technology need to be empowered – through the provision of knowledge and tools - to protect this most vulnerable and fundamental human right.
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