Information
Ensure Database Backups are Encrypted
Rationale:
Databases may contain sensitive. Backups of this data allow the data to easily leave the Enterprise and secure environments. Encrypting the backup makes accessing the data much more difficult.
Impact:
A database backup accidentally exposed to the Internet or transmitted outside a secure environment can be easily restored to a SQL Server anywhere and its contents discovered.
Solution
SQL Server backups need to 'Back up to a new media set', not 'Back up to the existing media set' in order to allow for encryption. The backup option to Encrypt Backup can be implemented after a Certificate or Asymmetric key has been applied to the SQL Server for this purpose.