In many ways, this might be the most significant vulnerabty of all. He recently authored the e-book: #Privacy2020: Identifying, Managing and Preventing Insider Threats in a Privacy-First World. Employees could pose a risk as a result of malicious intentions, or they could simply increase the likelihood of things going wrong through human error. Another common risk posed to your data security involves how you destroy your sensitive data. Often times, data breaches or privacy violations are just the first offense in a growing list of cybercrimes. It’s likely that b rick and mortar freight office s have secure computers with up-to-date virus and malware protection. Whether employees are looting intellectual property, customer data, or other valuable information, it can provide a leg up in a competitive job market, which presents a data security risk for companies operating in 2020. However, this threat isn’t just relegated to government institutions. Failing to provide accountability at every level of an organization creates the possibility that a data privacy event will occur next year. Employees steal company data for many reasons, but one of the most obvious and tangible motivations is money. These are just three of the most common ways in which your sensitive business data could be put at risk. PG Program in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning , Statistics for Data Science and Business Analysis, IBM’s annual Cost of a Data Breach Report, Verizon’s Data Breach Investigation Report, Empowering developers to own Code Security. VAT No: 912253064. Data security refers to protective digital privacy measures that are applied to prevent unauthorized access to computers, databases and websites. The path to navigating data protection risks is often filled with uncertainty. Companies often have terabytes of data, and the risks of data breach rise when companies don’t know where critical and regulated data is being held across their infrastructures — on desktops, servers and mobile devices or in the cloud. SMBs are the most vulnerable to a cyberattack, and their executives are the least likely to prioritize cybersecurity initiatives. Data security can be applied using a range of techniques and technologies, including administrative controls, physical security, logical controls, organizational standards, and other safeguarding techniques that limit access to Employees could pose a risk as a result of malicious intentions, or they could simply increase the likelihood of things going wrong through human error. Today’s dangerous digital landscape can be paralyzing. To counteract the threat posed by malicious intentions, pay particular attention to who you hire. Phishing campaigns are obnoxious, but spear phishing campaigns are downright nasty. 2020 is fast approaching. Discouraged by the notion that a security incident or privacy violation is an inevitability, too many companies will give up, taking their chances rather than fortifying their defenses. 1. Make sure you have a process in place for destroying all of your sensitive information to ensure that it never gets into the wrong hands. Carry out background checks, and be very careful about which employees are given access to sensitive data. Ensure continuity and durability of network security. In the past few years, several high-profile companies have endured data breaches on the heels of employees who were bribed to leak company information. However, too many companies give all employees complete access to all the company's data all the time. 1: Disgruntled Employees “Internal attacks are one of the biggest threats facing your data and systems,” states Cortney Thompson, CTO of … Data Centric Security does not provide immunity to cyber-attacks, insider threats and data breaches. If your sensitive data gets into the wrong hands you could face serious problems, and you could even face large fines if you do not protect the personal data of customers or employees properly. Data privacy extends to everyone, including employees, and every company needs to ensure that someone is monitoring the monitors. West Molesey Data security is a set of standards and technologies that protect data from intentional or accidental destruction, modification or disclosure. Employees present a serious risk to the data security of your business. However, what you may not know is that there are some more innocuous factors that could undermine … An analysis by Microsoft found that phishing scams are up 250% this year. Failing to account for controllable elements, like following password best practices, exposes your organization to great risk now and in the year ahead. The breach was orchestrated by a hacker who, by most accounts, was looking for bragging rights among various online communities. Assertion 9.4 •What are your top three data security and protection risks? Using personal devices or personal accounts to convey sensitive customer information is frighteningly common. Follow on Twitter: @teramindco. Preventative measures include educating your employees on what they can and cannot download from the internet and warning them about the dangers posed by email attachments. For instance, a study by Shred-it found that 40% of senior executives and small business owners report that negligence and accidental loss was the foundational cause of their latest security incident. However, too often, data breaches are caused by accident. About the Author Bio: Isaac Kohen is CTO and Founder of Teramind, a leading, global provider of employee monitoring, insider threat detection, and data loss prevention solutions. Virtually all data protection and privacy regulations state that firms can’t share the risk of compliance, which means that if your outsourcing partner fails to protect your company's data, your company is at fault and is liable for any associated penalties or legal actions that might arise from the exposure of that data. While technologies are important in data protection, properly managing the “human factor” will also help prevent your organization SMBs run the risk of losing data, employee productivity, revenue, and their reputation with the exponentially increasing number of data breaches. Meanwhile, IBM’s annual Cost of a Data Breach Report found that the average total cost of a breach approaches $4 million. Unfortunately, the personal computer of a remote employee may not be as secure, creating a significant risk when store sensitive data. As nations engage in cyber warfare, the ISF report … If an entity is deemed to be a data controller for the purposes of the GDPR, these obligations would include the need to identify a lawful basis to process data, a requirement to ensure appropriate technical and organizational measures are in place in order to safeguard the security of processing (including to prevent data breaches to the extent possible), and a requirement that data is not transferred outside … Sometimes data breaches and privacy violations are the work of sophisticated hackers who take advantage of particular vulnerabilities to steal information. Access to company or customer data should be a need-to-know arrangement that minimizes the opportunity for misuse or abuse. Meanwhile, a single employee click can compromise troves of company data. In doing so, they unnecessarily increase the likelihood that a security or privacy issue will emerge in the future. Connecting data protection risks to the security agenda is the premise of my BSidesSF talk. So make sure these weak links do not cause problems for your business and keep your data safer. Password-Related Threats 5. Privileged users frequently present a vulnerability because they are implicitly trusted while oversight is often minimal or nonexistent, creating an unnecessary opportunity for data loss and privacy violations. The integrity and privacy of data are at risk from unauthorized users, external sources listening in on the network, and internal users giving away the store. This section explains the risky situations and potential attacks that could compromise your data. Employees present a serious risk to the data security of your business. This could involve a secure shredding service that would ensure all of your data is completely destroyed in a secure manner. In most cases, employees are a company’s greatest asset, facilitating the exchange of goods and services that allow businesses to flourish. Complex User Management Requireme… You should also ensure that you have suitable enterprise-level anti-virus protection in place across your business, which is something that your IT department should be in charge of. Data security also protects data from corruption. The paper will go in to details of data protection methods and approaches used throughout the world to ensure maximum data protection by reducing risks and threats. Lack of Accountability 8. This data may be cheap for bad actors to attain, but it could be costly for companies in 2020. Digital communication is a ubiquitous part of our daily lives, … Protection of personal data and data security. A study by Keep Security found that 66% of SMBs don’t believe they will incur a data breach, which is antithetical to evidence produced by the Ponemon Institute that found that 67% of SMBs endured a serious attack in the last year. Attacks on big data systems – information theft, DDoS attacks, ransomware, or other malicious activities – can originate either from offline or online spheres and can crash a system. This reality was underscored recently when an employee at an Australian government contractor accidentally emailed to the public an internal spreadsheet storing people’s personally identifiable information. To be sure, bribing employees isn’t the most obvious way to perpetuate cybercrime, but it’s a vulnerability that companies need to be prepared to address. As more and more data becomes available online, these attacks could only intensify in the future. What Are the 3 Biggest Risks to Your Data Security. If you throw documents and hard-drives away without destroying them properly, other people could easily get access to all of your sensitive business data. A study by Google found that 1.5% of all login credentials used on the internet are vulnerable to credential stuffing attacks that deploy previously stolen information to inflict further damage to the company's IT infrastructure. A study by Deep Secure found that 45% of employees would consider selling company data to outsiders, and, incredibly, this information is very affordable. In the context of data protection risk, the starting point will be the data protection requirements that apply to your organisation and the risks of non-compliance with them, for example, the risk of personal data not being collected lawfully; the risk of a personal data breach occurring; the risk of failing to act on a data subject’s rights request; or the risk of unnecessary and prolonged processing of … Not protecting sensitive data appropriate to its value. After years of unfettered participation in the data-driven digital age that was defined by an “anything goes” ethos and a “move fast and break things” mentality, this shifting sentiment is both drastic and welcome. There are a lot of ways for hackers to make money from stolen data. For businesses of every size operating in every sector, this has broad implications. Children’s records may be stored for longer periods depending on their age. Securing your business data is incredibly important, and if you fail to take the correct precautions you could end up on the receiving end of a data breach and even a large fine where personal data is concerned. The study found that 15% of UK employees would sell information for $1,260, while 10% would sell data for as little as $315. A study by Risk Based Security found that data breaches are up more than 54% from the same period a year ago. Transform your cybersecurity strategy. Rather than selling stolen data online, thieves are exploiting companies for a ransom payment, creating a no-win scenario for businesses victimized by this approach. The shift to remote work over the past few months has increased the need for organizations to re-evaluate their security and risk management practices. We can break data security risks into two main categories: 1. SMBs do not enforce data security policies. More recently, it was revealed that AT&T employees were receiving bribes to plant malware on the company network that provided insights into  AT&T’s inner workings. To help your company prepare for this growing inevitability, here are 20 data security risks that your company could face in 2020. Risk No. Eavesdropping and Data Theft 3. If your employees aren’t properly trained in data security, they also pose a risk. Data security services. A surprising number of employees are willing to steal company data to gain an edge on the job market. What’s more, the techniques are becoming more sophisticated, making them both more difficult to identify and more successful in their implementation. With employees accessing corporate data at times on home computers or sharing and collaborating in new ways, organizations could be at greater risk for data leak or other risks. The Netwrix reportfound that 44% of companies don’t know or are unsure of how their employees are dealin… Unauthorized Access to Data Rows 7. Make sure they know how to handle sensitive data and that they take all appropriate security measures. Patient data should be held by the practice whilst the patient receives dental care from the practice. Theft of company data by current and former employees is incredibly common, something that the Canadian credit union, Desjardins, learned the hard way. Create your free account to unlock your custom reading experience. So what are the most important areas to focus on? As a result, you may be thinking more seriously about your own data security  and protection measures. Data breaches and privacy failures are both increasingly prevalent and incredibly expensive. Keep your customers’ trust, and safeguard your company’s reputation with Imperva Data Security. Isaac Kohen is the VP of R&D of Teramind https://www.teramind.co. 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