Protecting your business data is tougher because data is everywhere – cloud applications, dropbox, your reporting system. Show
At ClicData, our business is data and we frequently get asked what data security measures we have in place that can be used to safeguard against unauthorized access. Some of the measures we make available to our customers are not unique to our platform, in fact, they are used by many different cloud platforms for both consumer and business-to-business use. Here are five ways to prevent any unauthorized access to your company data. #1 Strong Password PolicyAsking your users to add symbols, numbers and a mix of characters forces passwords to be harder to discover. Ensuring a minimum number of characters and that they change it frequently, every 60 days or 90 days, also ensures that old passwords don’t stay the same for years on end, making it much easier to gain unauthorized access to the account. #2 IP WhitelistingIP Whitelisting looks at the user’s IP address and compares it to a list of “allowed” IP addresses to see if this device is authorized to access the account. If your company accesses the internet all via one or a defined set of IP addresses, which is typically the case, then you can add a list of IP addresses that are allowed access. All other IPs will be redirected to a not-allowed page. If your IP address changes frequently, then this method may not be possible, but you can typically ask your internet provider for a fixed IP address, especially if you have employees who work from home. #3 Single Sign-On (SSO)If your company employs a centralized user directory, using their directory to gain access makes things more manageable and easier for you. You will only need to remember one password, and if something happens, your network administrator can immediately remove access to all your applications in one go. If an employee is on leave or has left the company, you can be sure to disable their account in one step, as opposed to logging in to all the different systems and removing their access individually. #4 Two Factor AuthenticationTwo-factor authentication is a great way to make sure that it is really you that is accessing the account. In addition to the usual log in and password, you will need to have another device (typically your mobile device) close by since you will need to enter a code that will instantly be generated for you. Two Factor Authentication, or 2FA, is becoming very popular and both Google and Microsoft provide mobile apps that allow you to implement this very strong security method in most of your favorite apps. #5 MonitoringPrevention is obviously the first step, but monitoring login attempts and user activities can also provide insight into how best to prevent unauthorized access. For example, if you have logs of unsuccessfully attempted logins for one user. You can initiate an investigation to see if it is indeed the user that simply forgot their password, or if someone is trying to hack their way into the account. SummaryAll the above data security methods are absolutely needed these days in an age where getting access to data, irrespective of its importance is a game for hackers. Once an account is breached, the damage done can cost more than just money, especially if you have personal data in your account. ClicData offers all the methods mentioned above to keep your account and data safe. You can learn more about our advanced security features in our Help Center. You will also like:Information security (sometimes referred to as InfoSec) covers the tools and processes that organizations use to protect information. This includes policy settings that prevent unauthorized people from accessing business or personal information. InfoSec is a growing and evolving field that covers a wide range of fields, from network and infrastructure security to testing and auditing. Information security protects sensitive information from unauthorized activities, including inspection, modification, recording, and any disruption or destruction. The goal is to ensure the safety and privacy of critical data such as customer account details, financial data or intellectual property. The consequences of security incidents include theft of private information, data tampering, and data deletion. Attacks can disrupt work processes and damage a company’s reputation, and also have a tangible cost. Organizations must allocate funds for security and ensure that they are ready to detect, respond to, and proactively prevent, attacks such as phishing, malware, viruses, malicious insiders, and ransomware. What are the 3 Principles of Information Security?The basic tenets of information security are confidentiality, integrity and availability. Every element of the information security program must be designed to implement one or more of these principles. Together they are called the CIA Triad. ConfidentialityConfidentiality measures are designed to prevent unauthorized disclosure of information. The purpose of the confidentiality principle is to keep personal information private and to ensure that it is visible and accessible only to those individuals who own it or need it to perform their organizational functions. IntegrityConsistency includes protection against unauthorized changes (additions, deletions, alterations, etc.) to data. The principle of integrity ensures that data is accurate and reliable and is not modified incorrectly, whether accidentally or maliciously. AvailabilityAvailability is the protection of a system’s ability to make software systems and data fully available when a user needs it (or at a specified time). The purpose of availability is to make the technology infrastructure, the applications and the data available when they are needed for an organizational process or for an organization’s customers. The CIA Triad defines three key principles of data security Information Security vs CybersecurityInformation security differs from cybersecurity in both scope and purpose. The two terms are often used interchangeably, but more accurately, cybersecurity is a subcategory of information security. Information security is a broad field that covers many areas such as physical security, endpoint security, data encryption, and network security. It is also closely related to information assurance, which protects information from threats such as natural disasters and server failures. Cybersecurity primarily addresses technology-related threats, with practices and tools that can prevent or mitigate them. Another related category is data security, which focuses on protecting an organization’s data from accidental or malicious exposure to unauthorized parties. Information Security PolicyAn Information Security Policy (ISP) is a set of rules that guide individuals when using IT assets. Companies can create information security policies to ensure that employees and other users follow security protocols and procedures. Security policies are intended to ensure that only authorized users can access sensitive systems and information. Creating an effective security policy and taking steps to ensure compliance is an important step towards preventing and mitigating security threats. To make your policy truly effective, update it frequently based on company changes, new threats, conclusions drawn from previous breaches, and changes to security systems and tools. Make your information security strategy practical and reasonable. To meet the needs and urgency of different departments within the organization, it is necessary to deploy a system of exceptions, with an approval process, enabling departments or individuals to deviate from the rules in specific circumstances. Top Information Security ThreatsThere are hundreds of categories of information security threats and millions of known threat vectors. Below we cover some of the key threats that are a priority for security teams at modern enterprises. Unsecure or Poorly Secured SystemsThe speed and technological development often leads to compromises in security measures. In other cases, systems are developed without security in mind, and remain in operation at an organization as legacy systems. Organizations must identify these poorly secured systems, and mitigate the threat by securing or patching them, decommissioning them, or isolating them. Social Media AttacksMany people have social media accounts, where they often unintentionally share a lot of information about themselves. Attackers can launch attacks directly via social media, for example by spreading malware via social media messages, or indirectly, by using information obtained from these sites to analyze user and organizational vulnerabilities, and use them to design an attack. Social EngineeringSocial engineering involves attackers sending emails and messages that trick users into performing actions that may compromise their security or divulge private information. Attackers manipulate users using psychological triggers like curiosity, urgency or fear. Because the source of a social engineering message appears to be trusted, people are more likely to comply, for example by clicking a link that installs malware on their device, or by providing personal information, credentials, or financial details. Organizations can mitigate social engineering by making users aware of its dangers and training them to identify and avoid suspected social engineering messages. In addition, technological systems can be used to block social engineering at its source, or prevent users from performing dangerous actions such as clicking on unknown links or downloading unknown attachments. Malware on EndpointsOrganizational users work with a large variety of endpoint devices, including desktop computers, laptops, tablets, and mobile phones, many of which are privately owned and not under the organization’s control, and all of which connect regularly to the Internet. A primary threat on all these endpoints is malware, which can be transmitted by a variety of means, can result in compromise of the endpoint itself, and can also lead to privilege escalation to other organizational systems. Traditional antivirus software is insufficient to block all modern forms of malware, and more advanced approaches are developing to securing endpoints, such as endpoint detection and response (EDR). Lack of EncryptionEncryption processes encode data so that it can only be decoded by users with secret keys. It is very effective in preventing data loss or corruption in case of equipment loss or theft, or in case organizational systems are compromised by attackers. Unfortunately, this measure is often overlooked due to its complexity and lack of legal obligations associated with proper implementation. Organizations are increasingly adopting encryption, by purchasing storage devices or using cloud services that support encryption, or using dedicated security tools. Security MisconfigurationModern organizations use a huge number of technological platforms and tools, in particular web applications, databases, and Software as a Service (SaaS) applications, or Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) from providers like Amazon Web Services. Enterprise grade platforms and cloud services have security features, but these must be configured by the organization. Security misconfiguration due to negligence or human error can result in a security breach. Another problem is “configuration drift”, where correct security configuration can quickly become out of date and make a system vulnerable, unbeknownst to IT or security staff. Organizations can mitigate security misconfiguration using technological platforms that continuously monitor systems, identify configuration gaps, and alert or even automatically remediate configuration issues that make systems vulnerable. Active vs Passive AttacksInformation security is intended to protect organizations against malicious attacks. There are two primary types of attacks: active and passive. Active attacks are considered more difficult to prevent, and the focus is on detecting, mitigating and recovering from them. Passive attacks are easier to prevent with strong security measures. Active AttackAn active attack involves intercepting a communication or message and altering it for malicious effect. There are three common variants of an active attacks:
Passive AttackIn a passive attack, an attacker monitors, monitors a system and illicitly copies information without altering it. They then use this information to disrupt networks or compromise target systems. The attackers do not make any change to the communication or the target systems. This makes it more difficult to detect. However, encryption can help prevent passive attacks because it obfuscates the data, making it more difficult for attackers to make use of it.
Information Security and Data Protection LawsInformation security is in constant interaction with the laws and regulations of the places where an organization does business. Data protection regulations around the world focus on enhancing the privacy of personal data, and place restrictions on the way organizations can collect, store, and make use of customer data. Data privacy focuses on personally identifiable information (PII), and is primarily concerned with how the data is stored and used. PII includes any data that can be linked directly to the user, such as name, ID number, date of birth, physical address, or phone number. It may also include artifacts like social media posts, profile pictures and IP addresses. Data Protection Laws in the European Union (EU): the GDPRThe most known privacy law in the EU is the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This regulation covers the collection, use, storage, security and transmission of data related to EU residents. The GDPR applies to any organization doing business with EU citizens, regardless of whether the company itself is based inside or outside the European Union. Violation of the guidelines may result in fines of up to 4% of global sales or 20 million Euro. The main goals of the GDPR are:
GDPR includes protection of the following data types:
Data Protection Laws in the USADespite the introduction of some regulations, there are currently no federal laws governing data privacy in general in the United States. However, some regulations protect certain types or use of data. These include:
Additionally, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is responsible for protecting users from fraudulent or unfair transactions such as data security and privacy. The FTC can enact regulations, enforce laws, punish violations, and investigate organizational fraud or suspected violations. In addition to federal guidelines, 25 US states have enacted various laws to regulate data. The most famous example is the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). The law went into effect in January 2020 and provides protection to California residents, including the right to access private information, request deletion of private information, and opt out of data collection or resale. There also other regional regulations such as:
Information Security with ImpervaImperva helps organizations of all sizes implement information security programs and protect sensitive data and assets. Imperva Application SecurityImperva provides multi-layered protection to make sure websites and applications are available, easily accessible and safe. The Imperva application security solution includes:
Imperva Data ProtectionImperva’s data security solution protects your data wherever it lives—on premises, in the cloud and in hybrid environments. It also provides security and IT teams with full visibility into how the data is being accessed, used, and moved around the organization. Our comprehensive approach relies on multiple layers of protection, including:
What are 3 ways in which you can protect your data?Here are some practical steps you can take today to tighten up your data security.. Back up your data. ... . Use strong passwords. ... . Take care when working remotely. ... . Be wary of suspicious emails. ... . Install anti-virus and malware protection. ... . Don't leave paperwork or laptops unattended. ... . Make sure your Wi-Fi is secure.. How can you protect data from Unauthorised access?5 Best Practices to Prevent Unauthorized Access. Strong Password Policy. ... . Two Factor Authentication (2FA) and Multifactor Authentication. ... . Physical Security Practices. ... . Monitoring User Activity. ... . Endpoint Security.. What are three categories of unauthorized access and use?Know and Prevent the 6 Types of Unauthorized Access. Tailgating. ... . Collusion. ... . Pushing, Crawling Under or Climbing Over. ... . Passbacks. ... . Fraudulent Use of Cards. ... . Door Propping.. What are the three types of security policies?A: Three types of security policies in common use are program policies, issue-specific policies, and system-specific policies.
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