Data exchange with end-to-end encryption - with Segusoft from the Open Telekom Cloud

In this article you will read about,

• how the operation of Segulink in the Open Telekom Cloud works,
• how the potential of freely scalable IT capacities is exploited
• and about the challenge of end-to-end encrypted data exchange.

From San Francisco to Berlin to Beijing - many companies now collaborate internationally across locations. But when it comes to exchanging data, security is a top priority for many companies. Unfortunately, most solutions designed for this purpose either require software or a plug-in, or are not secure enough overall. With Segulink from Segusoft from the secure infrastructure of the Open Telekom Cloud, these times are now over.

"With Segulink, companies exchange messages and files of any size directly through the web browser - including end-to-end encryption and Office 365 integration," said Arno Klein, founder of startup Segusoft.

„Mit Segulink tauschen Unternehmen Nachrichten und Dateien beliebiger Größe direkt über den Web-Browser aus – inklusive Ende-zu-Ende-Verschlüsselung und Office 365-Integration“, so Arno Klein, Gründer des Start-ups Segusoft.

Exchanging data with end-to-end encryption used to be a problem for companies. This was because many of the solutions available on the market have disadvantages: some require software or plug-ins that are not allowed on companies’ computers. Other solutions are simply not reliable enough. “Many providers have a file limit. With others, uploads are constantly interrupted. And at the end, a hard drive has to be sent by post after all,” says Arno Klein, Segusoft founder and CEO.

Companies from a wide range of sectors are all too familiar with these problems – from the engineering office that works with extensive CAD data, to the film production company that sends high-resolution TV programmes to customers, to the architectural office that works with complex 3D models. Segusoft is providing a remedy at long last. The solution offers data exchange with end-to-end encryption – for example via the web browser or directly from Office 365. There is no volume limit per file. 

Servers that are fully and spontaneously scalable are a basic prerequisite for the solution. Before now, however, Segusoft operated the system with a cloud provider who demanded self-initiative: “Setting up new servers manually every time there’s a rise in demand isn’t practical in the long term. It also makes billing very difficult,” says Klein. In addition to this, start-up founder Klein uses the fully scalable IT capacities for another purpose: for constant refinement. To make sure that the system works in every version of every browser available on the market, Segusoft regularly puts its own product through its paces.

For this, Klein used to use IT resources from Amazon Web Services (AWS). But he didn’t want to operate the solution in this environment. Because: “In my experience, German customers in particular have reservations about American providers when it comes to data protection,” Klein says. Therefore, the Bavarian entrepreneur used another provider to operate the solution. This was an uncomfortable setup, as Segusoft had to constantly switch between two different cloud environments.

So Arno Klein looked for a provider who could combine all of the requirements – from fully scalable computing resources to hour-based billing, right through to the maximum level of data security and data protection.

The solution: IT resources from the Open Telekom Cloud from German data centers. This means that the start-up is now using one cloud platform for both the development and operation of Segulink, instead of switching back and forth between two different providers. As soon as new browser versions or a patch for a browser appear, Segusoft will refine the solution to take the new requirements into account directly in the Open Telekom Cloud. For this purpose, the company spontaneously sets up servers at any time, runs through various scenarios with different versions – and then releases the resources again.

The solution Segulink also became combinable with Microsoft Office 365 recently. Customers can use this to send messages and files with end-to-end encryption directly from Outlook or, in the near future, Sharepoint. And both products – both Office 365 and Segulink – are available from the Open Telekom Cloud.

• Company: Segusoft GmbH
• Foundet in: 2015
• Based in: Spardorf near Nuremberg
• Sector: Software

The company:
With the encryption platform Segulink, Segusoft offers companies a standard software for the secure transmission of files and messages. In addition, the 2015 start-up provides services relating to the design, creation and distribution of secure and scalable applications.

The challenge:
Before now, Segusoft used Amazon Web Services (AWS) for development and another cloud provider for operation. However, customers attach most importance to data security and data protection. Operating the solution with AWS was therefore not an option. And the other cloud provider, who operated Segulink, offered no opportunity for automatic scaling.

The solution:
The Open Telekom Cloud on an OpenStack basis: flexible IT resources from certified, high-security Deutsche Telekom computer centres now enable spontaneous scaling at any time. All data processed in the certified German computer centres of the Open Telekom Cloud is subject to strict German data protection laws. Thanks to the pay-as-you-go approach, Segusoft only ever pays for precisely the capacities the company actually needs.

The result:
No more worries about data security or data protection. The computing capacities are fully scalable at any time. Development and operation take place in the same environment. In addition, Segulink recently became combinable with Office 365 – also from the TelekomCLOUD.