Event Registration Software

Event Registration Software, Customer Registration Information, and Data Security

- Phillip Lawson (Feb. 2, 2011)

Since 1995, online event registration management has evolved into a highly technical and adaptive industry. In turn, the need for training registration software has grown exponentially as organizations increasingly tap into these resources to improve their on-site training, web-base e-learning, seminars and other large-scale events.

As the online training registration industry has grown, and with it the amount of information that is utilized online and then stored, so too the need for advanced data and system security has grown. An increase in traffic and data storage capacity brings with it greater vulnerability, and thus the need for additional security measures to protect it.

In simple terms, data security is the practice of keeping information safe from corruption and unauthorized access. The mission of data security measures is to ensure privacy while protecting personal or corporate data.

Unauthorized access to sensitive data could lead to numerous problems for the larger corporation or even the personal home user. Whether it's a homeowner who was robbed of bank account details or a system administrator dealing with compromised client information in a database, the results can be detrimental at worst or a serious headache at best.

Data security for Online Event Registration Systems wouldn't be complete without a solution to backup critical information. Though it may appear secure while confined away in a machine, there is always a chance that corporate data or your personal files can be compromised. A user might be hit suddenly with a malware infection where a virus destroys all of his files. A computer hacker could enter a computer and thieve data away by sliding through a security hole in the operating system. It could even be an inside job that causes a business to lose those sensitive reports. If all else fails, a reliable backup solution will allow for the restoration of data and save the user from having to start completely from scratch.

Early on in the evolution of online practices, there was a push to secure the data streams between the client browsers and the servers receiving personal data. This need was eventually satisfied with the introduction of SSL (Secured Socket Layer) encryption. SSL certificates are now part of any serious data protection efforts and are quite common in event registration systems.

Once the data was received by the servers, however, there were additional security concerns. Who could poke and prod at the server's storage systems? What was the strength of the firewalls protecting the server environments as a whole? These issues then required additional levels of security auditing that are still quite lacking with most of the event registration software solutions out there today.

There are now additional certifications that can be acquired that satisfy most, if not all, of the compliance requirements, including PCI/DSS Compliance, SAS 70 Type I and SAS 70 Type II audits required by service organizations under today's ever-expanding regulatory compliance umbrella. Recent federal legislation, such as Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX), HIPAA, GLBA, coupled with growing state privacy laws and rulings are requiring companies to provide evidence of a strong, sound system of internal security controls.

Additional information about these compliance certifications are below:

PCI/Data Security Standards  https://www.pcisecuritystandards.org
SAS-70 Compliance/Certification  http://www.sas70.us.com
SSL Certificate Encryption  http://www.thawte.com

These compliance levels are beginning to be a strict requirement by all government and medical organizations hoping to process registrations online.

Additionally, Online Event Registration Tools not certified with these important credentials put their customers' data, system integrity, and financial systems at risk. It's smart to assess the current status of corporate and personal online security systems and take steps to reduce risk. It's action worth taking.