At a glance
| Supported databases | Thales names Oracle, SQL Server, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Snowflake, SAP HANA, Teradata, MySQL, MariaDB, Db2, Cassandra and others (not mapped per module) |
| Auditing and activity monitoring | Data access audit logs in Transparent Encryption; file activity monitoring |
| Masking | CipherTrust Data Masking (real-time masking) |
| Encryption or tokenization | File-level, column-level and application encryption; tokenization |
| Privileged access | Privileged-user access controls on encrypted files |
| Policy enforcement | Central key and access policies in CipherTrust Manager |
| Compliance reporting | Positioned for GDPR, HIPAA and PCI DSS; report details not documented on the pages checked |
| Deployment | On premises or CDSP as a Service; agents on Linux, Windows, Unix |
| Licensing | Commercial, by quote; free trial of the SaaS edition |
CipherTrust fits enterprises that want one vendor for central key management (including database TDE keys and KMIP clients), file-level encryption under databases, and application-level tokenization. It is a product family rather than a single tool, so scope the exact modules you need and get a quote; Thales does not publish prices.
Overview
The CipherTrust Data Security Platform is Thales's umbrella for its data protection products. Thales lists CipherTrust Manager (central key and policy management), Transparent Encryption, Tokenization, Data Masking, Application Data Protection, Database Protection, Data Discovery and Classification, Cloud Key Management (BYOK and HYOK), and Secrets Management powered by Akeyless, plus data security posture management and file activity monitoring.
For databases there are three common patterns. CipherTrust Manager holds the master keys for native database encryption and for any KMIP-compatible client. Transparent Encryption agents encrypt at the file system or device layer on Linux, Windows and Unix, so database files are protected without application changes. Database Protection and tokenization protect individual columns, with Thales naming SAP HANA and PostgreSQL in its tokenization use cases. The platform can run customer-managed on premises or as CDSP as a Service.
Key features
- CipherTrust Manager: central key and policy management for databases, servers, storage, cloud services and KMIP clients (FIPS 140-3 Level 3 appliance, per the Transparent Encryption page)
- Transparent Encryption: file-level encryption with access policies, privileged-user controls and access audit logs, with agents for Linux, Windows and Unix
- Live Data Transformation to encrypt or rekey data while applications keep running
- Tokenization, data masking and application data protection for column- or field-level protection
- Data discovery and classification with about 250 built-in information types, per Thales
- Cloud key management for BYOK, HYOK and cloud-native keys on AWS, Azure and Google Cloud
- Customer-managed on premises or Thales-managed CDSP as a Service
Integrations and ecosystem
Pros and cons
Pros
- One vendor for key management, file encryption, tokenization and masking
- Transparent Encryption protects database files without application changes
- Live Data Transformation avoids downtime for initial encryption and key rotation
- Wide list of named databases and big data platforms
Cons
- A product family: modules, agents and appliances must be scoped and licensed separately
- No public pricing
- Thales does not map each named database to a specific module on its public pages
- File-level encryption does not hide data from users who are allowed to query the database
Pricing
Thales publishes no prices for the CipherTrust products on its platform, Manager or Transparent Encryption pages; you contact sales for a quote. The platform page links a free trial of the managed CipherTrust Data Security Platform as a Service.
Pricing checked on the vendor's official page on 7 November 2026. Prices change; confirm before buying.
Who it is best for
Enterprises that need central key management and encryption across many databases and storage systems, often for PCI DSS or similar audits.
Typical use cases
- Hold Oracle and SQL Server TDE master keys outside the database host
- Encrypt database data files and backups at the file system layer on Linux or Windows
- Tokenize card numbers or national IDs in application tables for PCI DSS scope reduction
- Rotate encryption keys on live data without an outage window
Who should look elsewhere
- Teams that only need temporary database credentials for applications: see HashiCorp Vault.
- Teams that want masked copies of production for testing: see Perforce Delphix or DataMasque.
Verdict
Thales CipherTrust is a broad enterprise data protection family whose core strengths are central key management and transparent file-level encryption. It covers many databases, but the module that applies to each one varies, so map your estate to specific products before buying. Smaller teams that only need secrets or masking may find a narrower tool easier to run.
Frequently asked questions
Does CipherTrust encrypt databases directly?
In several ways. CipherTrust Manager can manage the keys for native database encryption and KMIP clients, Transparent Encryption encrypts the database files at the file system layer, and Database Protection and tokenization protect selected columns.
Can CipherTrust run as a cloud service?
Yes. Thales offers CipherTrust Data Security Platform as a Service, fully managed by Thales, alongside customer-managed on-premises deployment, and links a free trial from the platform page.
Which databases are supported?
Thales names Oracle, SQL Server, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Snowflake, SAP HANA, Teradata, MySQL, MariaDB, Db2, Cassandra, Couchbase, Informix, SAP ASE, Amazon RDS and Azure SQL, among others, but does not say which module covers each. Confirm with Thales for your version.
How much does CipherTrust cost?
Thales does not publish prices for CipherTrust; contact Thales sales for a quote.
Sources
- CipherTrust Data Security Platform (Thales)
- CipherTrust Manager (Thales)
- CipherTrust Transparent Encryption (Thales)
- Database security solutions (Thales)
- Encryption products overview (Thales)
Checked November 2026.
Listed in: Database Security & Auditing.
How we research reviews and what star ratings mean: our editorial method.