Exponam: Handling Data Conveniently and Securely

Data volume is constantly increasing, and with that, accessing and deriving insights from data is getting more challenging by the day. Organizations thus far have relied on Excel sheet file formats like XLS and CSV to access the data or Apache Parquet files for data in the cloud. But these technologies are no longer sufficient or adequately secured to handle the challenge.

Exponam is addressing the 21st-century data storage and access challenges with its .BIG file format. These ultra-compressed, highly secure data files can be accessed by a passphrase, token, or multifactor authentication, which makes them a more secure alternative to conventional CSV files.

“Through our .BIG file format, we are making data files more secure, faster to explore, and easy to share and store,” says Herman Weintraub, co-founder and CEO of Exponam. “We are bringing a significant improvement to data files and formats that haven’t changed much since the 70s and 80s.”

Onboarding and using .BIG file format is also very straightforward. Users just need to download the .BIG writer tool that matches their environment and plug it into their relevant data applications. Users can then invoke the tool when writing a file.

When receiving a file, the process is even easier. Users can seamlessly open any .BIG file using the Exponam Explorer spreadsheet. The spreadsheet can also be used for filtering and sorting data, enabling users to sift through hundreds of millions of rows of data instantly and effortlessly. Data can be filtered by any column, and the results can be extracted and moved to Microsoft Excel with a single click. .BIG files can be used in the exact same ways as any other file type, via APIs, command line interfaces, spark data sources, JDBC, JAVA, and windows libraries.

.BIG files are proving to make data scientists’ life more efficient, as well. Since .BIG files are smaller, it’s cheaper to store huge volumes of data. Querying it also becomes five times faster. The embedded security is an added bonus. The business critical data that scientists access and share are well-protected, immutable, and provenance is assured.

Through our .BIG file format, we are making data files more secure, faster to explore, and easy to share and store. We are bringing a significant improvement to data files and formats that haven’t changed much since the 70s and 80s

In one instance, Exponam’s .BIG file and Explorer helped streamline a global company’s massive annual audit. The company had to access transaction details to the tune of 200 million rows, distributed across more than 200 spreadsheets. Accessing the spreadsheets, filtering the data, and extracting it into a new sheet to locate a subset was nothing short of a nightmare. By converting to .BIG files, the company could seamlessly filter the data in Explorer and move it to Excel with a single click. What had taken up a day’s worth of data manipulation could now be done in a matter of seconds. The client eliminated all their issues relating to the auditing cost, speed, and security.

This case scenario is a testament to Exponam’s competency in helping organizations tame the data deluge. Today, there are 64 zettabytes of data globally, which is inching toward 175 zettabytes by 2025, according to IDC. .BIG files are going to become business’s blessing in this regard, driving down storage space by 98 percent so businesses don’t have to worry about their data footprint.