Document Security & Insider Threats you must prepare in 2021
There’s nothing quite like a review of existing procedures and policies to begin a new change in data and document security practices. This has never been so important – with insider threats being on the rise for the past decade, this trend is likely to continue in 2021 and the coming years. According to Verizon DBIR 2019, 34% of data security breaches were caused by insiders in 2019. This means it is all the more critical to level up an organization’s defense practices regarding their data and how it is accessed and used by their employees.
Concerning risk mitigation, data, and document security in a company, here are some practices that can help manage insider threats in 2021 and the coming years.
Prioritize contextual intelligence: When it comes to data and document security and insider threat management, artificial intelligence can play a pivotal role. Across industries and sectors, AI has become a catchword, even for the protection of documents and data. Although there is value to the notion of artificial intelligence and its implementation as a potential tool when executed rightly, any AI algorithm or process is only as effective as the information fed into it. This is why to use it as your vantage point, it is crucial to building contextual intelligence when creating algorithms and programs to manage insider threats. Simply put, it is vital to have timely information that enables your company to grasp the context behind a data security occurrence or document leak.
For instance:
- What took place before, during, and after the incident?
- Gauging the real nature behind the incident – was it accidental or malicious?
- The elements behind the incident and their objectives.
Given this contextual level, organizations will be able to react appropriately and accurately to insider threats and ensure their confidential documents and sensitive information is adequately protected.
Instituting effective programs to address insider threats: Presently, most businesses may have only insider threat investigations capabilities. And in some other cases, they may not have efficient tools to implement those investigations, at the right time, due to inadequate context, as stated above. In the years following 2020, organizations must seriously consider insider threat detection and reactions, simultaneously, with investigation capabilities. This can ensure a holistic and robust insider threat management process. Having a dedicated insider threat function in place along with a document DRM solution will ensure their data security plan can safely address insider threats. It can help to allocate budget and personnel, specifically in this regard. Given how prevalent data security risks have become, their pervasiveness, and expensive implications, a robust document security solution can be the answer to addressing insider threats.
Striking the right balance between data security and privacy: Businesses these days must ensure that their data security needs are adequately balanced with protecting the privacy of their users. Privacy regulations such as GDPR are now a necessity. Hence, companies must invest in data security programs that ensure confidentiality and data security at the core of their objectives. For instance, given the fine-grained permission settings available in digital rights management solutions, organizations can see who holds the keys to information while restricting access in order to preserve privacy. Having a good document security solution in place will help ensure any anomaly is detected before an incident takes place. Although it can be challenging to strike the right balance for document access and use, given the robust security features in digital rights management, it can be possible to do so.
Going beyond circumstantial evidence: Insider threats are highly challenging to any organization. This is because a data security leak can either take place due to malicious or accidental behavior from insiders. Hence, it is crucial to understand the root cause of insider threats. Most organizations look into insider threats only when and after they take place. But, it can be fruitful to discern the type of technologies that enable insider threats; the kind of business practices that could provoke them; and how cultural changes could help cut down the possibility of insider threats.
Every organization has unique conditions, and while some may allow access to cloud storage at work for personal reasons, it is simply not worth the risk. For some companies, employees can use cloud data services in a “trust but verify” approach along with an additional layer of scrutinizing. There is no single, decisive blanket rule when it comes to understanding the root causes behind insider threats. However, it is recommended to introspect on your employee activity and consider if minor changes can be made to your document security policies that could cut down the overall risk of insider threats.
Instituting a digital rights management solution cannot only make it easier to secure your documents and data but can also fit into your budget for insider risk management. It can further continue productivity while at the same time cut down the risk profile of insiders by tightly controlling document access and use.
