As I was driving the other day my typical disgust at the number of people who run red and orange lights was a little more interesting than normal. A cargo truck for a secure records storage company breezed through what could only have been a dark, dark orange light.

This made me think a bit. Was that truck filled with sensitive information? Did it contain top-secret files destined for the archives? Were there countless legal briefs and contractual agreements stored in stacks of boxes inside the back of the truck? Since nobody crashed into the vehicle – fortunately – nobody got to find out.

That brings us to the topic at hand. Secure file transfer. A big deal is made about this simple procedure online. If I want to transfer sensitive information to another, remote computer, it’s a pretty secure process while in transit as long as the respective parties have done their jobs correctly. Somebody sets up a website with a secure certificate and a file-upload mechanism and away you go. The data is encrypted as it moves securely from point A to point B. Or secure FTP is used to the same end result. Granted, each end computer and environment has to deal with security, but you’re pretty well assured that once your files have been transferred, they got there safely and really, without risk.

How are your files getting transferred – in the real world or virtual world? Do you know whether the parties responsible for doing so are speeding through red lights or taking an armored tank to reach the destination? Be sure you know – and trust – who you have on that security detail. You don’t want any crashes along the way.