In this day and age, data hacks are happening with greater frequency and with more devastating results. Companies cannot seem to keep up with hackers' growing sophistication and persistence, and IT departments do not have the funding necessary for effective measures.
But companies can take opt for data centers equipped with biometric security as safe-houses for valuable information. Biometric technology uses individuals' unique physical characteristics to allow access control from the front door to the server cabinet. Fingerprint scanners and other biometric platforms are more effective than key cards or passwords, because they cannot be lost, stolen or hacked into. For the best data security around, biometric access control is the way to go.
Because of this fact, one organization with a great need for stringent security is looking for a data center equipped with biometric security.
U.S. House of Representatives to open new data center
According to Data Center Dynamics, the House of Representatives is taking bids for a new, co-located facility to house its data. The center will also hold other government agencies' information like Library of Congress, US Capitol Police, Congressional Budget Office, Government Accountability Office and Government Printing Office.
The new location must fall within a certain range from the Capitol, coastline, and other landmarks like railroads, fire access and highways. Most likely, the facility will be located in Virginia, Central Pennsylvania or Western Pennsylvania. Additionally, the center must have the most rigorous security measures available, including 24/7/365 security and auditable biometric access control. With such classified data housed in the new center, biometric security is the only acceptable platform to guarantee the information stays out of prying hands.
Even if one of the personnel at the data center tried to defect, there is still a method to prevent that. The best biometric systems offer dual access control. This technique requires two biometric IDs to access a door or server cabinet. That way, if one employee wanted to gain entry to top secret data, he or she would still need a second to provide that access.
Salesforce to open a UK center
Salesforce.com just unveiled its first European data center, located in Slough, England, according to Gigaom. Next up are two more facilities in France and Germany next year. The European Union provides strict policies with regards to data center access, making it an attractive destinations for many companies.
To learn how to achieve uniform access control from the front door to the server cabinet, download our whitepaper here.