As we all know, data protection is a very important topic within the technology world, and one of the most effective methods for securing confidential data today is to make the switch from a standard business broadband connection to a leased line. Leased lines are much more resilient to attack.
Leased Line Security
There’s a common misconception that leased lines are inherently more secure than business broadband, but unfortunately leased line security isn’t all that interesting! It’s less about characteristics and more about physical access. Believe it or not, a leased line is, on the surface, vulnerable to the exact same sort of risks as business broadband. The difference comes in the fact that ubiquitous access to leased lines is virtually impossible. This significantly reduces the risk of random or accidental attacks, and instead limits risks to targeted attacks only. Of course, even if a targeted attack should occur, physical access to a leased line is challenging to say the least, while wiretapping isn’t much easier (and illegal, too!).
Perhaps the biggest risk when it comes to leased line security is an attack on the internet service provider. That’s why it’s important to compare internet service providers to ensure you’re opting for a reliable, trusted provider, such as companies like BT Business, Virgin Media, Wavenet, Arrow, and so on.
Staying Vigilant
Leased lines are often marketed as ‘private’ and ‘dedicated’ – and they are! – but keep in mind that these terms relate to the fact that leased lines are reserved exclusively for use by your business, and do not apply to the security of the line. As we’ve examined, physical access to leased lines is challenging, but damage to the line can occur, particularly around times of heavy construction work, for example. Even with a leased line, it’s vital that businesses remain vigilant when it comes to their security, and take additional measures to protect their data, such as encryption, or perhaps a 2 layer VPN solution.
Creating a Continuity Plan
Should an attack occur which affects your business, there are two separate areas which need to be addressed: data recovery, and continuity. In terms of continuity, there has been a definite trend in recent years for businesses to opt for two separate connections in case of downtime. Some businesses opt for a secure leased line as their primary connection, followed by business broadband as their secondary connection. However, with leased line costs dropping, many are now choosing to install a secondary leased line with slower bandwidth which still provides benefits such as low latency and 1:1 contention.
James Ward is CEO & Founder of Leased Line Comparison, a website founded in 2013 and has since helped over 10,000 customers. James gained his expertise in the leased line world by joining a telecoms company called Exponential-e back in 2011 which taught him everything he needed to know to set up this website today. James’ interests include horse racing, skiing, rugby, hiking, boxing and riding. He spends his time between family and friend, socialising and sport.