What is Tokenization?Tokenization is a
process that replaces sensitive data – and that can be
credit card information, social security numbers,
national insurance numbers and so on – with a unique
surrogate value or token that retains all the essential
information without compromising its security. Tokens
can be used in place of original data and because it is
a representation of the data, but is not the data
itself. Additionally, tokens can use the same amount of
storage as the original clear text data instead of the
larger amount of storage required by encrypted data.
It represents an
alternative data protection architecture that is proving
ideal for some organization’s requirements. For example,
enterprises around the globe are using tokenization as a
practical and effective way to reduce PCI DSS audit
scope. Tokenization easily and effectively takes
applications and systems out of scope for both initial
compliance requirements and annual audits.
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