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Prevent vital business data from walking out the door

Data is one of the most important entities for any business. Every organization has been associated with data in one way or another, forcing them to keep it as secure as possible. No organization wants to discover that their critical business data has been accidentally lost. Still, Gartner’s predictions convey that “global security spending will reach $96 billion in 2018, up 8 percent from 2017.”

But how can such a vital business entity be lost?

There is no doubt that organizations spend a large part of their profits on data security practices and still have to deal with many threats and data breaches. The main reason behind is the lack of strict security policies and rules within the organizations themselves. Internal security loopholes provide employees with various opportunities to commit data breaches, intentionally or unintentionally.

We typically like to mix up our devices, including laptops, tablets, desktops, and smartphones, without tracking how much data they might have. Inside every device is a treasure trove of dark data, data that an organization does not manage or control. It is obvious that no staff stays in a company forever. The staff comes and goes. And so is the data they store on their devices.

Organizations where employees are free to access business data using their personal devices typically face this problem. Also, when data is left written on notebooks or any other device, without the prior knowledge of the organization, it is difficult to back it up. Here are some tips organizations can follow to prevent important business data from leaking.

1. Add encryption everywhere for user devices

Organizations should require encryption on all user devices. Almost all modern operating systems allow users to turn on encryption and it is no longer a red flag for performance. Most cloud hosting providers also protect your company’s sensitive information by practicing end-to-end encryption. This helps companies track ‘who is accessing their data?’, ‘For how long and at what time did the user access a file?’ etc.

2. Use tools that detect problems and apply rules

It is important to detect excessive local storage on a regular basis to avoid data risks. Organizations should prioritize the use of domain-joined PCs for employees and secure systems over homegrown login scripts. Most companies use third-party tools to protect their corporate network. But, more often than not, differentiating between a stack of corporate data and a stack of personal data is impossible and leads to a complex data structure.

3. Train teams and spread awareness about the risks of dark data

Organizations can reduce the risk of data loss by making employees understand the red flags of local data storage. Employee awareness helps a lot. Let them know its benefits and tricks. Building an efficient infrastructure to minimize dark data is one option. But it won’t end the problem, as the root cause of dark data is unmanaged data storage. Therefore, it is vital that organizations make strict policies and conduct proper training so that employees understand.

4. Discourage local storage and encourage cloud storage

It is well known that storing data on local systems is a big risk. Backing up to local systems is a waste of time. Data stored on the cloud platform is safer from Ransomware than data on local systems. For organizations, regular data wipe is difficult and time consuming. A smart alternative to this is to use cloud platforms to store data, as the cloud automatically backs up your data and protects it from any kind of damage.

Most organizations are unaware of the loss that has befallen them due to so-called dark data. However, each organization can manage its data storage by partnering with employees. Ask your employees not to rely on local copies, as old-school tricks aren’t as flexible. On the other hand, newer technologies such as hosted cloud technology offer them ways to share and store documents.

Last words

Eventually, it’s up to employees and organizational leaders to decide how long they want to go: smart decision-making, security policies, and good governance are what keep companies from dark data.