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| 1 | +--- |
| 2 | +title: "Two Years of Cryptomator Hub – Team Encryption Reimagined" |
| 3 | +slug: hub-anniversary |
| 4 | +date: 2025-11-02 |
| 5 | +tags: [cryptomator, hub, anniversary] |
| 6 | + |
| 7 | +summary: "Cryptomator Hub celebrates two years of secure cloud collaboration—now with new features for teams and businesses." |
| 8 | + |
| 9 | +ogimage: |
| 10 | + relsrc: /img/blog/hub-anniversary-2025.png |
| 11 | + width: 1200 |
| 12 | + height: 675 |
| 13 | +--- |
| 14 | + |
| 15 | +On **November 2, 2023**, **Cryptomator Hub 1.0** was released—our solution for secure, encrypted collaboration in the cloud. **Two years** later, Cryptomator Hub has become a central tool for companies, universities, and NGOs that want to protect their sensitive data while working efficiently as a team. |
| 16 | + |
| 17 | +On this anniversary, we look back on two exciting years full of further developments, beta features, new areas of application—and what's yet to come. |
| 18 | + |
| 19 | +<figure class="text-center"> |
| 20 | + <img class="inline-block rounded-sm" src="/img/blog/hub-anniversary-2025.png" alt="Two Years of Cryptomator Hub – Team Encryption Reimagined" /> |
| 21 | +</figure> |
| 22 | + |
| 23 | +## What is Cryptomator Hub? |
| 24 | + |
| 25 | +Cryptomator Hub is the **central platform for managing and sharing encrypted vaults**. |
| 26 | + |
| 27 | +While the classic Cryptomator app allows individuals to protect their cloud files, the Hub extends this principle to teams and organizations. |
| 28 | + |
| 29 | +Cryptomator Hub offers a web-based dashboard that administrators and team members can use to **manage users, assign roles, and control access rights**—all fully encrypted and GDPR-compliant. |
| 30 | + |
| 31 | +Cryptomator Hub thus bridges the gap between strong **end-to-end encryption** and user-friendly teamwork. |
| 32 | + |
| 33 | +## Features That Make the Difference |
| 34 | + |
| 35 | +1. **Centralized Management of Users and Permissions** |
| 36 | + Whether you're a small team or a large organization, administrators can always keep track of who has access to which vaults. Role-based permissions make management easy and transparent. |
| 37 | +2. **Web of Trust** |
| 38 | + This security model enables secure key exchange between team members via digital trust relationships. No unencrypted data exchange and no complicated key files, as trust is mapped technically. |
| 39 | +3. **Create Vault Role** |
| 40 | + Teams can independently create new vaults without administrators having to accompany each step. This keeps collaboration flexible while maintaining a high level of security. |
| 41 | +4. **Self-Hosting & Data Protection by Design** |
| 42 | + Data protection is not an add-on, but a core principle: Cryptomator Hub can be operated locally (on-prem) or in private cloud environments. This gives companies and institutions complete control over their infrastructure and data. |
| 43 | +5. **Integration with Popular Cloud Services** |
| 44 | + Whether OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox, or Nextcloud, Cryptomator Hub integrates seamlessly into existing work environments and protects data regardless of the provider. |
| 45 | + |
| 46 | +## Typical Areas of Application |
| 47 | + |
| 48 | +### Companies and Public Authorities |
| 49 | + |
| 50 | +Companies use Cryptomator Hub to implement zero-trust security strategies. **Industries with high compliance requirements**—such as healthcare, public administration, and legal services—benefit particularly from GDPR-compliant cloud encryption. |
| 51 | + |
| 52 | +Companies such as [Walbusch GmbH & Co. KG]() are already successfully using Cryptomator Hub and can report consistently positive results: |
| 53 | + |
| 54 | +> **With Cryptomator Hub, we can securely manage sensitive company data while making it easy for our employees to use.** |
| 55 | +> |
| 56 | +> *Andreas Cofalla, Application Manager IT, Walbusch GmbH & Co. KG* |
| 57 | +
|
| 58 | +### Universities and Research Institutions |
| 59 | + |
| 60 | +Research teams secure their project data with Hub without sacrificing cloud collaboration. **Sensitive research data** remains protected while collaboration across departments or countries continues to function. |
| 61 | + |
| 62 | +### NGOs and Nonprofits |
| 63 | + |
| 64 | +For organizations operating globally, Cryptomator Hub offers a secure way to share **confidential documents**—from grant proposals to personnel data—even with limited IT resources. |
| 65 | + |
| 66 | +### IT Teams and Data Protection Officers |
| 67 | + |
| 68 | +Hub simplifies audits, role management, and verification of data protection-compliant working practices—a clear advantage in internal and external security audits. |
| 69 | + |
| 70 | +## Two Years of Further Development – And Looking to the Future |
| 71 | + |
| 72 | +Since its launch in 2023, Cryptomator Hub has developed rapidly. |
| 73 | + |
| 74 | +The [1.4.0 update](/blog/2025/04/15/hub-1.4.0/) in April 2025 brought two decisive milestones with the **Web of Trust** and the **Create Vault role**. Furthermore, everything is focused on optimization, scaling, and future-proofing—especially with regard to the upcoming standards of [post-quantum cryptography](/blog/2025/07/24/post-quantum-roadmap/). |
| 75 | + |
| 76 | +But we are not resting on our laurels. **Three new features** are already in the pipeline to make Cryptomator Hub even more powerful and user-friendly. |
| 77 | + |
| 78 | +### User/Group Management |
| 79 | + |
| 80 | +**User and group management** will become much more convenient in the future. With the new, **integrated user/group management**, smaller companies and organizations can create and manage their team structures directly in the hub—intuitively, clearly, and without detours. |
| 81 | + |
| 82 | +In the background, we continue to rely on **Keycloak**—a proven, powerful solution for identity and access management. |
| 83 | + |
| 84 | +<figure class="text-center"> |
| 85 | + <img class="inline-block rounded-sm" src="/img/blog/hub-anniversary-2025-user-management-preview.png" alt="Cryptomator Hub – User/Group Management Preview" /> |
| 86 | +</figure> |
| 87 | + |
| 88 | +### Emergency Access |
| 89 | + |
| 90 | +In companies, it can always happen that employees leave and access to important data is lost as a result. |
| 91 | + |
| 92 | +The upcoming **Emergency Access** feature provides a remedy here: it allows you to **designate a specific group of authorized persons** who can restore access to a vault, either collectively or partially, in an emergency. |
| 93 | + |
| 94 | +**Even in critical situations or in the event of personnel changes**, the company remains capable of acting. |
| 95 | + |
| 96 | +<figure class="text-center"> |
| 97 | + <img class="inline-block rounded-sm" src="/img/blog/hub-anniversary-2025-emergency-access-preview.png" alt="Cryptomator Hub – Emergency Access Preview" /> |
| 98 | +</figure> |
| 99 | + |
| 100 | +### Files in Use (in the Desktop App) |
| 101 | + |
| 102 | +A frequently expressed wish of our Hub customers: **better support for collaborating on Office files.** |
| 103 | + |
| 104 | +While **LibreOffice**, for example, already has a built-in locking system for open files, this has been missing in **Microsoft Office** until now. That's why we are currently developing our own **“locking system”** in the **Cryptomator desktop app** that recognizes when a file is already open and informs other users. |
| 105 | + |
| 106 | +This makes collaborating on documents more conflict-free, transparent, and secure—another step toward smooth teamwork. |
| 107 | + |
| 108 | +## Two Years of Trust, Cooperation, and Security |
| 109 | + |
| 110 | +In two years, Cryptomator Hub has evolved from an idea into a reliable platform for secure teamwork. |
| 111 | + |
| 112 | +We would like to thank all users, administrators, and testers who have helped to further develop Cryptomator Hub with their feedback—and we look forward to the next chapter. |
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