Evaluating DBaaS through the lens of data security

Today, millions of people around the world put their trust in digital enterprises. From house addresses to mobile phone numbers and bank account details, people key-in critical and personal information to be able to avail new-age digital services. This trust between a customer and an enterprise is governed by dedicated data security teams and robust databases that are scalable and failproof.

For startups and small and medium businesses (SMBs), gaining customer trust is of paramount importance. However, setting up secure databases is not only expensive, but it also costs manpower. What’s more, building databases can take up to a few weeks, and developers or testing teams do not have the luxury of time. And in an era of the app economy and seasonal sales, these enterprises will also have to scale databases on-demand or build new databases at short notice. So, how do they ensure that managing databases does not come in the way of innovation?

The focus on fool-proofing data security is important now, more than ever, as data volumes grow exponentially. The huge cohort of India's Internet users is expected to reach 627 million in 2019. By 2022, it is also estimated that India will have 37.2 billion downloads a year, which makes the country the fastest growing app market in the world.

In response to these trends, startups and SMBs that process sensitive data usually add database service providers to their data security equation and entrust them to orchestrate end-to-end storage, access, processing and scaling of data. As a result, the database market is abuzz with several providers, who offer high-performance databases through the realms of cloud. Unfortunately, there is also a cloud of suspicion looming over the database-as-a-service (DBaaS) market as increasing data breaches and lack of transparency put customers at unease. These factors make it difficult for enterprises to choose from the gamut of database service providers.

I strongly recommend that enterprises dig deep, take time to complete a thorough evaluation and ask the right questions before choosing a database provider.

Making the right database decision

The levels of firewalls, frequency of back-ups, hardware, storage and more - all play important roles in making database security and management hassle-free. Here are some key parameters that you should consider while choosing managed database vendors for your enterprise:

High data encryption: Storing, accessing, processing, and copying of data within a database must happen in a highly secure manner. Users can access data only if they have a specific key.

Automated backups: The database that you choose should feature automated backups and easy data recovery functionalities so that you do not lose a single byte of information, in case of failures in the nodes of a database.

24/7 support: Providers must offer a dedicated support team that addresses an issue or risk at short notice.

Real-time analytics: Easy-to-use dashboards must provide instant updates on performance, usage, and errors.

No administrative overhead: Managed database providers must be able to simplify daily decisions on choosing the right database size, ensuring ‘24/7’ accessibility, implementing regular back-ups, and financing overhead costs.

Flexible pricing: Ensure that suppliers make you pay only for what you use and do not charge exorbitant upfront costs. To do this, you must evaluate your current and future database requirements first, before selecting plans and service providers.

Easy scaling: Do not let the popularity of your application suffer from poor database functionality. Ensure that the chosen database can be scaled up or down on demand and at no hidden costs or conditions.

The fact that the global market for operational databases is poised to reach the USD 28 billion mark by 2022 is a clear indication of the growing demand for managed databases. The underlying factor is that data security will continue to be the top priority for every customer and service provider in the database market. Do ensure that your company’s sensitive data is in safe hands.

By Prabhakar Jayakumar, Country Director, DigitalOcean India