Database-as-a-service platform introduces encryption-at-rest

While storing data in the cloud is undoubtedly convenient it also introduces risks and encryption is increasingly seen as a way of helping combat them.

Database-as-a-service company mLab is introducing encryption-at-rest as an opt-in data security measure for customers of its most popular plans, at no additional cost.

The mLab platform currently manages nearly 500,000 MongoDB deployments across Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, and Microsoft Azure. Encryption-at-rest will be available to mLab's Database-as-a-Service customers on Dedicated Standard and High Storage plans, covering deployments across both Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud Platform.

The company already offers customers in-transit encryption via SSL to secure data transmission over networks. Adding encryption-at-rest boosts mLab’s commitment to enterprise security by encrypting data on disks and wherever backups are stored. The feature is designed so that there will be minimal performance impact on the database.

"As the cloud services industry matures, many customers, especially enterprises, are developing programs to perform due diligence on their portfolio of service providers," says Jared D Cottrell, CTO of mLab. "Whether an industry regulation or best practice, encryption-at-rest is one of the most commonly-requested security features. Encryption-at-rest provides a layer of protection against unauthorized access to sensitive data, especially attacks directed at the physical devices on which the data is stored. mLab's encryption-at-rest feature gives our customers greater peace of mind."

You can find out more on the mLab website.

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