Member Article

Security, privacy and cloud-based digital signage

The benefits of cloud-based digital signage are widely recognised and applauded inside the digital signage industry, with emphasis on the system’s ease of use and low startup costs. However, as with any technology, users must be aware of the potential risks and limitations associated with the solution to ensure that they.

Digital signage is a form of electronic display showing advertising and general information in private and public areas (such as shopping malls, hospitals, colleges, shops, waiting rooms, restaurants) both outdoors and indoors. Most people associate the technology with the screen, which can be anything from a smart photo frame and 40’’ LCD displays to large digital billboards. We?ve all come across it at one point in time.

Cloud-based digital signage systems are hosted on the ’‘cloud’’ (Internet) and not on a dedicated server that you would have to buy and maintain (hence costing less and involving less set-up work and staff). This implies that you can easily access your system from anywhere in the world provided there is an Internet connection in place and access. However, people using it worry about several aspects highlighted below.

1) As information is sent via internet channels to be stored in the cloud, it is potentially easier for a third party to access this data than if the information was stored in an on-premise hosted system.

SOLUTION: Arguably, cloud-based systems are more secure than on-premise ones. Digital signage software solutions, such as ours, operate on a secure ?https? network, so that all data is encrypted and no external party can read it. For example, digitalsignage.NET runs on a 2048 bit ?https? encryption connection. To put this in context, even for a 128 bit strong encryption a hacker would need approximately a trillion years to break into a data transmission session. So the chances of having your data compromised are extremely low to practicallty non-existent.

2) New users of cloud-based software may be worried that, because they are not physically storing and backing up the data themselves, this could be easily lost once errors occur on the system.

SOLUTION: When selecting the right cloud-based software to manage your digital signage network, ensure that it automatically backs up and replicates the information you upload, as well as identify corrupted files. In this way, your information will never be lost but will be saved several times on various servers.

3) Another cloud-computing related concern is that the organisation hosting the data might access it without users knowing it.

SOLUTION: Generally speaking, your digital signage software provider will never access your content without your consent. When you set up an account to manage your content and screens in, you also choose a password that you and only you know (unless you share it with someone else). However, if you feel uneasy about this aspect, bring it up in the initial discussions with the software provider.

We hope you’ve found these tips of use. Feel free to share your thoughts and comments on the matter in the comments box below or contact us directly.

About Dynamax Technologies

With a strong 360° sector expertise ranging from system integration through to software development, we are an authority on digital signage, providing best-of-breed and flexible solutions to customers all around the world. Our products have been used by large media owners such as Clear Channel and JCDecaux as well as by smaller companies such as Merseyrail, East End Foods and a variety of educational institutions. Learn more about us by visiting our websites.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Dynamax Technologies Ltd .