Thales Addresses Enterprise Encryption Key Governance for Microsoft Azure

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- RSA Conference – Thales, a leader in critical information systems, cybersecurity and data security, announces it is collaborating with Microsoft to provide key management services for Microsoft Azure and Microsoft Office 365 that will allow organizations to maximize the control of their data and provide the highest level of assurance, regardless of whether the data is on premise or in the cloud.

Click to Tweet: .@Thalesesecurity KMaaS collaboration w/@Microsoft meets enterprise encryption key needs http://bit.ly/2lztEvQ

Secure key management is essential to protecting data. Microsoft Azure-based applications use Azure Key Vault to access a variety of key management capabilities, such as key creation, backup and rotation, as well as basic crypto operations like encrypt/decrypt and sign – all within the secure boundary of a Thales hardware security module (HSM). A typical organization has data, key and apps distributed across the cloud and on premise. Regardless of where the keys are stored, the integrated vision of the two companies is to provide a consistent single pane of glass allowing enterprises to effectively manage their encryption keys across diverse environments, enforce business policy and workflow for how keys are provisioned, stored, accessed and monitored.

Thales is working to deliver an integrated key management service that provides the following:

• Integrated and enhanced key authorization, including single sign on (SSO), separation-of-duties enforcements, authoritative storage policies and automatic synchronization of keys
• Data loss prevention arising from process encryption key activity
• Data outage prevention due to key expirations with automated alerts and business workflows on encryption key lifecycles
• Higher visibility of critical process with enhanced encryption key monitoring, discovery and usage reports

Cindy Provin, Chief Strategy Officer at Thales e-Security says:
"The cloud is making businesses reassess how they think about and use technology. Shared services and public cloud infrastructures, however, do not always have a clear demarcation of tenant execution and storage space, so the security of the services therefore depends on the level of protection given to the cryptographic keys used to protect the confidentiality and integrity of sensitive data. Thales already offers 'bring your own key' (BYOK) to Microsoft Azure, providing the confidence to trust the service with an organization's most valuable assets. Our collaboration with Microsoft to offer key management-as-a-service will further enhance and simplify the governance around those keys."

Sumedh Barde,  Group Program Manager, Microsoft Azure Key Vault at Microsoft says,"As our customers ingest more and more keys to encrypt an ever-growing variety of Microsoft Azure resources, the ability to manage and govern those keys becomes critical to staying in control. Thales Key management-as-a-service for Azure is a great step forward in answering customer demands for central visibility of all those keys as well as the ability to govern them."

Thales will be previewing key management-as-a-service for Microsoft Azure at RSA Conference, Booth #1007, Moscone Center, San Francisco, February 13-17, 2017.

For industry insight and views on the latest data security trends check out our blog www.thales-esecurity.com/blogs.

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About Thales e-Security
Thales e-Security is the leader in advanced data security solutions and services, delivering trust wherever information is created, shared or stored. We ensure that company and government data is secure and trusted in any environment – on premise, in the cloud, in data centers and in big data environments – without sacrificing business agility. Security doesn't just reduce risk, it's an enabler of the digital initiatives that now permeate our daily lives – digital money, e-identities, healthcare, connected cars and with the internet of things (IoT) even household devices. Thales provides everything an organization needs to protect and manage its data, identities and intellectual property and meet regulatory compliance – through encryption, advanced key management, tokenization, privileged user control and meeting the highest standards of certification for high assurance solutions. Security professionals around the globe rely on Thales to confidently accelerate their organization's digital transformation. Thales e-Security is part of Thales Group. www.thales-esecurity.com 

About Thales
Thales is a global technology leader for the Aerospace, Transport, Defence and Security markets. With 62,000 employees in 56 countries, Thales reported sales of €14 billion in 2015. With over 25,000 engineers and researchers, Thales has a unique capability to design and deploy equipment, systems and services to meet the most complex security requirements. Its exceptional international footprint allows it to work closely with its customers all over the world.

Positioned as a value-added systems integrator, equipment supplier and service provider, Thales is one of Europe's leading players in the security market. The Group's security teams work with government agencies, local authorities and enterprise customers to develop and deploy integrated, resilient solutions to protect citizens, sensitive data and critical infrastructure.

Thales offers world-class cryptographic capabilities and is a global leader in cybersecurity solutions for defence, government, critical infrastructure providers, telecom companies, industry and the financial services sector. With a value proposition addressing the entire data security chain, Thales offers a comprehensive range of services and solutions ranging from security consulting, data protection, digital trust management and design, development, integration, certification and security maintenance of cybersecured systems, to cyberthreat management, intrusion detection and security supervision through cybersecurity Operation Centres in France, the United Kingdom, The Netherlands and soon in Hong Kong.

SOURCE Thales