The Danger of Pretty tools
- Congruity IT
- Oct 13
- 2 min read
We love tools that look good. Sleek dashboards, smooth animations, colors that just pop, checkmarks that make us feel productive. We trust them. We rely on them.
This is my reaction anyway when a tool really hits "your" aesthetic"
And why wouldn’t we? They’re polished. They’re intuitive. They look like they know what they’re doing.
Polish; however, is not security. It does not protect your data.
The reality for most of us is that we don't think about or even question the tool or app that just works in our lives. We open it, log in, hit send.....assuming that it is safe. Meanwhile, the data is traveling in plain text.
It can be an attractive, cost saving strategy; however, misguided that may be. On the other hand companies are aware that producing an unappealing product will definitely turn people off, but few care what is happening under the hood. The important things like secure defaults, encrypted connections, good logging, etcetera. These visual elements while attention grabbing do not of themselves impart any indication of underlying security. We make the assumption. Because it feels trustworthy, it must be. That is the Trap.
Polish seduces. When data finally leaks, or ransomware hits inevitably the story is always the same.
"We didn't think this could happen to us"
Always ask, Always verify, and never let aesthetics distract you.
Below you'll find a short list of some common issues that can be lurking under the surface of your favorite applications.
Unencrypted data in transit — your info can be intercepted if it’s not properly encrypted.
Default or weak passwords — easy to guess, rarely changed.
Poor patch management — security updates not applied promptly.
Excessive permissions — apps requesting more access than they need.
Hidden logging or telemetry — apps collecting data you didn’t agree to share.
Social engineering vulnerability — humans are often the weakest link.
No audit trails — impossible to track what happened if something goes wrong.
Single points of failure — critical data stored in one place without backup.
Please keep in mind that this list is certainly not exhaustive.
Now the ending. You've made it to the end of my ramblings, and I/We Congruity IT thank you. We talk and discuss these topics because they are close to home. We work with people to ensure they can focus on what matters and aren't getting bogged down by the technology that should empower them. If you want you focus on what matters to you, protect your business, and inspire your customers with confidence in doing business with you. Don't hesitate to reach out.
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