In simple terms, data security is the practice of keeping data protected from corruption and unauthorized access. The focus behind data security is to ensure privacy while protecting personal or corporate data.

Data is the raw form of information stored as columns and rows in our databases, network servers and personal computers. This may be a wide range of information from personal files and intellectual property to market analytics and details intended to top secret. Data could be anything of interest that can be read or otherwise interpreted in human form.

However, some of this information isn't intended to leave the system. The unauthorized access of this data could lead to numerous problems for the larger corporation or even the personal home user. Having your bank account details stolen is just as damaging as the system administrator who was just robbed for the client information in their database.