SFTP and SCP

1.9.2 THE SECURE FILE TRANSFER PROTOCOL (SFTP)

It is important to note that FTP is not a secure protocol, since the password is sent in clear text. The 

Secure Shell (SSH) File Transfer Protocol, also known as the Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP), 

is as the name implies a secure FTP. Although it is widely used, SFTP is not an Internet Engineering 

Task Force (IETF) standard yet. SFTP is based on SSH, i.e., the Secure Shell protocol using port 22. 

In addition, it is not FTP operating over SSH, but rather a new protocol that is better than the Secure 

Copy Protocol (SCP). In comparison to earlier versions of the SCP protocol, which permitted only file transfers, the SFTP allows for a range of operations on remote files. Thus, SFTP is actually a remote  file system protocol. The additional capabilities enjoyed by SFTP clients, when compared with SCP, include the resumption of interrupted transfers, directory listings, and remote file removal. Hence, it is recommended that one move to SFTP for better security if an SFTP server is available.