Only DuoKey
- Admin SSO and MFA
- Contextual access on key use
- Built-in monitoring dashboard
- Block rules that override allows
- Tamper-evident audit log
- Optional mTLS on decrypt calls
- Built-in end-to-end key test
- Multi-site or geo-redundant deployment
- Rotation without a new Purview label
- Automatic Entra ID app registration
- No end-of-life runtime or OS
- Key never assembled in one place
Feature by feature
DuoKey and Thales, side by side
Vendor and support
124/7 support with SLA response times
Round-the-clock support with contractual response times for critical incidents.
Microsoft DKE coverage
3Native Microsoft 365 DKE endpoint
Serves the Microsoft GetKey and Decrypt calls used by Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.
4Decrypt authorized by Entra ID groups
The key service itself restricts decryption to members of directory groups or roles.
Administration and access control
6Admin SSO and MFA
Administrators sign in through the corporate identity provider with multi-factor authentication.
7Fine-grained administrator RBAC
Custom roles and permissions scoped to keys, services or organisational units.
8Quorum (four-eyes) approval
Sensitive key operations need approval from several administrators.
Monitoring
10Audit logs exported to a SIEM
Key and admin events forwarded to Splunk, Sentinel, QRadar or syslog.
11Built-in monitoring dashboard
Health and usage dashboard shipped with the product.
12SNMP monitoring
SNMP polling or traps for the operations team.
Zero Trust and audit
28Access rules changed live
DKE access rules are edited in a UI or API and apply at once, without config files or redeployment.
29Block rules that override allows
Explicit deny rules to cut decrypt access for a user, group, network or country during an incident.
30Several identity providers
Entra ID plus Okta, Keycloak or other OIDC providers for sign-in and group-based rules.
31Tamper-evident audit log
Each audit record is signed or hash-chained, so edits and deletions are detectable.
32Optional mTLS on decrypt calls
A client-certificate check on DKE decrypt calls, on top of the Entra ID token.
33Built-in end-to-end key test
The key and backend are tested with a wrap/unwrap round-trip before the service goes live.
Availability and key lifecycle
13High-availability cluster
Active-active nodes so the key service survives a node failure.
14Multi-site or geo-redundant deployment
Survives the loss of a whole data centre.
15Key backup and recovery procedure
Documented backup and restore of keys after an incident.
16Old documents open after rotation
Content protected with a previous key version stays readable.
17Rotation without a new Purview label
Rotating the key does not require a new label or a relabelling campaign.
18Scheduled key rotation
Automatic rotation on a schedule.
Hosting and deployment
19Vendor-hosted DKE service (SaaS)
The vendor runs the DKE endpoint; nothing for the customer to host.
20On-premises option
Run the whole DKE stack inside your own perimeter.
21Automatic Entra ID app registration
The DKE app registration is created for you instead of manual portal steps.
Key storage, compliance and exit
23FIPS 140 Level 3 key storage
Keys protected by a FIPS 140-2 or 140-3 Level 3 validated module.
24Key never assembled in one place
Multi-Party Computation or threshold cryptography: no single node holds the whole key.
25Vendor ISO/IEC 27001 certified
The vendor's own operations are ISO/IEC 27001 certified.
26Customer chooses the hosting region
Pick where the key service and keys are hosted.
Why teams choose DuoKey
Key differences with Thales
01
Context on every decrypt
CipherTrust authorizes DKE by email or Active Directory group per tenant. DuoKey adds IP range, country and time-of-day rules to each decrypt, so a valid user outside an allowed context is still refused.
02
No key in one place
Thales protects DKE keys in Luna HSMs. With DuoKey's MPC backend the key is split across independent nodes and never assembled, so no single device or administrator can use it alone.
03
No manual Azure wiring
Thales documents the Entra ID app registration as manual portal steps, and allows one DKE service per CipherTrust Manager instance. DuoKey creates the app registration through Microsoft Graph and runs as many DKE services as you need.
04
The Luna Key Broker path
Thales's public Luna Key Broker guide runs to more than 50 manual commands on AKS, uses a CentOS 7 image (end of life since June 2024) and ships a sample policy that admits any user with a UPN. The guide itself presents this as a basic demonstration.
What Thales does well
CipherTrust is mature: 24/7 support with one-hour critical response, quorum approvals, SNMP, scheduled DKE rotation, Active Directory group authorization, standard key export and a hosted option in the EU or US. If you already run CipherTrust for other workloads, consolidating DKE there is a reasonable choice.
FAQ
Is DuoKey an alternative to Thales for Microsoft 365 DKE?
Yes. DuoKey provides the customer-held second key and the DKE service that Microsoft 365 calls, operated by DuoKey or deployed on your own infrastructure.
Can I migrate from Thales to DuoKey?
Yes. Create a DuoKey DKE service and a sensitivity label for new content, and keep the existing Thales service running for documents already protected with it until they are re-labelled or reach the end of retention.
How were these criteria chosen?
They follow the sections of a customer DKE and key management RFP: support, Microsoft DKE coverage, administration, monitoring, availability, hosting, key storage and exit. Every cell links to the public document it is based on.
Evidence
Every claim on this page, sourced
Thales
- [1]www.applytosupply.digitalmarketplace.service.gov.ukcriteria 1https://www.applytosupply.digitalmarketplace.service.gov.uk/g-cloud-14/services/916507393315784
- [2]cpl.thalesgroup.comcriteria 2, 20, 23https://cpl.thalesgroup.com/cloud-security/encryption/double-key-encryption
- [3]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 3, 5, 32, 21https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cckm_ag/msft-dke/index.html
- [4]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 4, 9https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cckm_ag/msft-dke/dke-ten/index.html
- [5]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 6https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cm_admin/authentication/users/index.html
- [6]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 7https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cm_admin/abac-permissions/index.html
- [7]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 8https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cm_admin/quorums/index.html
- [8]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 10https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cm_admin/monitoring/log-forwarding/index.html
- [9]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 11https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cm_admin/config-splunk/index.html
- [10]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 12https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cm_admin/snmp/index.html
- [11]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 28, 29, 16, 17https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cckm_ag/msft-dke/managing_dke_endpoints/index.html
- [12]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 30https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cm_admin/group-mapping/index.html
- [13]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 31https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cm_admin/monitoring/logs/index.html
- [14]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 13https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cm_admin/clusters-and-nodes/index.html
- [15]thalesdocs.comcriteria 14, 25https://thalesdocs.com/dpod/resources/white_papers/platform_white_paper/index.html
- [16]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 15https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cm_admin/backups/index.html
- [17]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 18https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/cdsp-cdspaas/page/reference/cckmapi/msft-dke-apis/msft-enable-key-rotation-dke-endpt/index.html
- [18]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 19https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/cdsp-cdspaas/page/admin/cckm_ag/msft-dke/index.html
- [19]github.comcriteria 22https://github.com/ThalesGroup/dke-service-setup/blob/main/guide.md
- [20]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 26https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/cdsp-cdspaas/page/getting_started_with_cdspaas/index.html
- [21]docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.comcriteria 27https://docs-cybersec.thalesgroup.com/bundle/v2.20-cdsp-cm/page/admin/cm_admin/keys/index.html
DuoKey
- [1]docs.duokey.comcriteria 1, 2https://docs.duokey.com/docs/why-mpc
- [2]docs.duokey.comcriteria 3https://docs.duokey.com/docs/double-key-encryption/cockpit-v2/overview
- [3]docs.duokey.comcriteria 4, 29https://docs.duokey.com/docs/double-key-encryption/cockpit-v2/access-policies
- [4]docs.duokey.comcriteria 5https://docs.duokey.com/docs/double-key-encryption/operations/b2b-collaboration
- [5]docs.duokey.comcriteria 6, 31https://docs.duokey.com/docs/cockpit/security
- [6]docs.duokey.comcriteria 7https://docs.duokey.com/docs/cockpit/administration
- [7]docs.duokey.comcriteria 8https://docs.duokey.com/docs/cockpit/key-policies
- [8]docs.duokey.comcriteria 9https://docs.duokey.com/docs/cockpit/access-policies
- [9]docs.duokey.comcriteria 10https://docs.duokey.com/docs/openshift-on-prem/security/compliance-audit
- [10]docs.duokey.comcriteria 11, 32, 33https://docs.duokey.com/docs/double-key-encryption/setup/dke-service-deployment
- [11]docs.duokey.comcriteria 28https://docs.duokey.com/docs/double-key-encryption/operations/zero-trust-access-control
- [12]docs.duokey.comcriteria 30https://docs.duokey.com/docs/developer/administration-api
- [13]docs.duokey.comcriteria 13https://docs.duokey.com/docs/openshift-on-prem/vm-deployment
- [14]docs.duokey.comcriteria 14https://docs.duokey.com/docs/openshift-on-prem/mpc-cluster
- [15]docs.duokey.comcriteria 15https://docs.duokey.com/docs/openshift-on-prem/operations/backup-recovery
- [16]docs.duokey.comcriteria 16, 17, 21https://docs.duokey.com/docs/double-key-encryption/cockpit-v2/dke-configuration
- [17]docs.duokey.comcriteria 19https://docs.duokey.com/docs/double-key-encryption/knowledgebase
- [18]docs.duokey.comcriteria 20, 22, 24https://docs.duokey.com/docs/openshift-on-prem/prerequisites
- [19]docs.duokey.comcriteria 23https://docs.duokey.com/docs/oracle-tde/overview
- [20]duokey.comcriteria 25https://duokey.com/en/compliance/iso-27001
- [21]docs.duokey.comcriteria 26https://docs.duokey.com/docs/double-key-encryption/faq
- [22]docs.duokey.comcriteria 27https://docs.duokey.com/docs/pkcs11-lib/function-coverage
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