If RightScale’s report on the state of the cloud in 2017 is anything to go by, the year 2016- for the first time in recent years- saw other cloud concerns surpass security. 32% of the IT professionals surveyed were particularly worried about the lack of relevant resources/expertise, compared to 29% who still considered […]
If RightScale’s report on the state of the cloud in 2017 is anything to go by, the year 2016- for the first time in recent years- saw other cloud concerns surpass security. 32% of the IT professionals surveyed were particularly worried about the lack of relevant resources/expertise, compared to 29% who still considered security as the primary problem.
A year later, in 2017, concerns surrounding security went down further, and so did other worries. Now tying with managing cloud costs and lack of resources/expertise, cloud security is still a concern among 25% the professionals.
The significant reduction is evidently due to substantially improved cloud security systems coupled with fewer reports of large-scale data breaches. That notwithstanding, a quarter of IT experts are still worried about security, and that’s a considerably large portion.
According to a 2017 study by IBM and Ponemon on the cost of data breaches, they have every reason to be concerned. The average organizational, per capita data breach costs, are now at an all-time high of $225. Consequently marking a growth rate of 61% in just 10 years, primarily due to the fact that many organizations are exceedingly integrating their core processes into the cloud.
All things considered, you stand to potentially lose quite a lot now if your enterprise file sharing system was infiltrated. Data security is therefore critically important, more than ever before. But, unfortunately, organizations are not doing enough to enforce it, considering the bulk of security incidences are now emanating from enterprise-side vulnerabilities.
While service providers are progressively implementing superior security features, ultimate data safety is not possible without equally effectual measures by users. Here are 10 ways you can minimize enterprise file sharing security risks:
Most of the other security measures are pretty pointless if you don't have exclusive control over your organization’s data. Unfortunately, some enterprises are still going for free solutions, which for a long time, have been known to retain some of the data control rights.
Going with free solutions may be advisable in some special circumstances like trials. But not for organization-critical processes and sensitive data. You should rather opt for a paid EFSS system that grants you exclusive data control privileges.
To further enforce data control, you should consider keeping files in-house by choosing private over public EFSS. 72% of organizations are already within this bracket, mostly because of entirely exclusive data privileges.
If this proves to be too costly or resource-heavy, you could alternatively keep sensitive data within a much smaller private cloud setup, while leveraging a public EFSS. As a matter of fact, such a hybrid framework is currently the most popular, with 85% of enterprises.
The more the number of people with unrestricted access to a system, the higher the number of potential vulnerability sources. So keep your system closely knit by managing network activities and system permissions.
Users’ system credentials should be managed according to their corresponding job duties and security clearance levels.
81% of the hacking-related data breaches in 2017 occurred after attackers capitalized on stolen/weak system passwords. And this should not be surprising, considering “123456” is currently the most common password.
A simple password is easy to recall, but it’s also susceptible to hacking. So secure your EFSS system with a complex one, then back it up in an offline server just in case you forget.
While system access through mobile devices can boost employee productivity by up to 9 hours per week, end-point gadgets will always be a major threat to your enterprise file sharing system.
Since it wouldn’t be advisable to completely eliminate them, consider implementing mobile device management solutions, and enforcing acceptable use policies.
File management system tracking would excellently supplement your use policies and device management solutions. In addition to controlling overall data usage, you’ll be able to manage additions and exceptions, plus track and report adherence to existing policies.
This will not only help you minimize potential vantage points for data leakage, but also identify vulnerabilities before they eventually develop into full-blown attacks.
If your firewall is breached, the best case scenario would be reacting to contain the threat as soon as possible. But sadly, it takes enterprises an average of 201 days to identify a breach, and 70 more to contain it.
One of the most reliable ways to mitigate this is implementing a full-scale antimalware solution that comprehensively scans the system in real-time. It should subsequently not only prevent attacks but also raise alarm in case one is detected.
24% of data breaches are caused by human error. A good example of one is when military contractors mistakenly shared President Obama’s classified security blueprints of Marine One.
It’s impossible to completely secure your files against such occurrences. But you can substantially minimize the number of potential incidences by adequately training all the users on system usage, plus corresponding protocols.
Even when you comprehensively implement security measures to protect enterprise file sharing, you still have to be prepared for a possible attack. And a great way to do this is making data useless to hackers through encryption.
While encryption during transfer is pretty standard by now, some organizations are still yet to implement device and server encryption. This should also be a priority since enterprise data can still be accessed at rest.
By now, all EFSS service providers acknowledge that security is still a primary concern among their consumers. Consequently, they all market themselves as impenetrable systems- including ones with comparatively weak security features.
Of course, this can be confusing at times, but thanks to industry certification, there’s a way to separate the wheat from the chaff. So focus only on certified service providers that comply with set security standards.
That said, it’s critically important to leverage a proven solution you can trust. Get in touch with us at Filecloud and let us help you set up a super secure enterprise file sharing system.
Author: Davis Porter
