Data breaches are a common threat to businesses of all types and sizes. Stolen information or data corruption can cause permanent damage and become a business burden. IBM created the cost of an information breach in 2023 to be, at best, $4.45 million, which took an average of about 277 days to detect and contain.
No matter the size of your business, you want to protect your information by preventing data breaches. Here are some proven strategies to protect your data and sensitive customer information.
How to protect your business from data leakage
Here are four steps you can take to protect your business data.
1. Review your security procedures.
The first step is to review your current safety protocols. The best strategy is to ensure security, as hackers must take many security measures before gaining access to sensitive data. Tools such as firewalls, encryption, secure file-allocation software, and antivirus software keep sensitive data from dropping into the wrong hands.
If your cloud storage service offers security tools, you should still set up security measures. Limit employee access to the cloud and use an additional security sheet, such as multi-factor authentication or single sign-on.
Back up your data regularly so that your system can be quickly and easily restored with the latest data in the event of a hack. Additionally, background checks on new employees should be conducted, and security training should be provided. Be sure to keep all virus-scanning software up to date and delete any suspicious files immediately.
2. Protect your cloud and data.
Consider using a cloud entree security broker (CASB) to develop a more complete cloud security strategy. These software platforms provide seamless visibility, data security, monitoring and management of all your cloud file storage needs. CASB data protection uses machine learning and user behaviour to detect unauthorized users and events. An organization can use CASB to respond in real-time, thereby preventing hackers from gaining access to sensitive information. Even if you are not monitoring the system, the software will block illegal access to your data.
Visibility is another essential element of cloud security. CASBs mitigate visibility problems by auditing a company’s cloud services and penalizing useful products while blocking dangerous ones. CASBs also provide data safety capabilities such as encryption and tokenization.
Misconfiguration and weak security procedures are growing causes of cloud data breaches. These breaches are often overlooked because they usually stem from insiders’ and companies’ assumptions that cloud providers will protect their data. In fact, under the shared responsibility model, cloud security is the responsibility of the user, not the cloud service provider.
Prevent these problems by implementing a firm password policy and user access controls. Ensure your cloud storage is private and accessible only to those users who need it. CASB can also help by monitoring and tuning your cloud services for maximum security. It can be helpful on large haze platforms such as Amazon Web Facilities, Salesforce, and Office 365.
The more coats of security you can add, the more secure your data will be. As with cloud technologies, employee access must be limited using unique codes and biometrics. Only vital employees should have access to sensitive company data.
3. Train your employees to follow safety procedures.
The security of your data requires that employees appreciate your rules and procedures. Clearly define password supplies, user access rules, and other security measures. Give examples of different scripts people use to obtain information. Warn employees about calls requesting personal or business information.
While many people notice email scams, train employees to know less obvious ones, such as phishing, where emails appear to come from legitimate companies but instead contain malware. Treat any request for sensitive data as doubtful and warn employees not to click on email accessories or links. In other words, if you didn’t ask for the document, don’t open it. Hackers and thieves are creative, so alert your employees to any new schemes you hear about.
Identity theft is one of the most common uses of information obtained from a data breach. You must protect yourself, your employees and your customers from harassment. Medical clinics are at very high risk due to the confidential information they store about patients. Additionally, you need protection from liability if this information becomes known. Ensure that all employees and all persons authorized to access your data are aware of security procedures and follow them carefully. Failure to follow these rules leads to costly mistakes.
Data breaches take many forms, and paper files are also susceptible to theft. Set a clean desktop policy to ensure no one leaves files visible at the end of the day. Ensure that all employees are aware of maintenance and grinding procedures. Don’t let documents pile up waiting to be destroyed. If you cannot shred documents quickly, hire a service that is available at a scheduled time to shred unwanted files.
4. React when mistakes are made.
Your company may still experience a data breach despite your best prevention strategies. Learn from data security failures by analyzing what happened. Ask yourself how a company can better protect its information and, if necessary, regain customer trust. In case of violation, take action within 24 hours. Assign a team of key leaders and assign roles and responsibilities. A fast response helps employees and customers regain a sense of security.
Stay updated with laws and regulations regarding proper methods for deleting sensitive files and data. While technology provides greater convenience, it also creates risks. Connecting more devices, such as smartphones, tablets and even smartwatches, gives hackers an additional way to hack and obtain personal and business data.
Keeping your company’s information secure and avoiding media attention requires more than one step. Gone are the days when a username and password provided sufficient security. Ensure your company uses the latest software technology to keep digital data, and don’t forget to protect paper documents. Data security resources are a necessary part of the modern business world.
Types of Business Data Leaks
Here are some of the most common types of business data leaks:
- Malicious attacks can occur due to failures or gaps in the cloud, liabilities in third-party software, and weak passwords. These spells usually involve the theft or leakage of information that hackers sell on the black market.
- Malicious and ransomware attacks involve destroying records or holding them for ransom. According to IBM, the average cost of a destructive malware hack is $4.82 million, and the average price of a ransomware hack is $4.54 million.
- Attacks on nation-states are less common but can be the most costly. These attacks occur when hackers collaborate with the government to commit crimes against the United States. and its allies.
What to do if your company’s data has been hacked
Here are some tips for resolving a data breach that has impacted your business.
Determine the source and extent of the violation.
First, check what type of breach it is and what data was compromised. Businesses should have an intrusion finding or prevention system to monitor these things. However, it would be difficult to identify the violation and its cause without these systems or software.
Take security to the next level.
Try to fix the problem or vulnerabilities in your security systems. If the breach resulted from employee mistakes, such as clicking on an email link that installed a virus or using a weedy password, train your employees to know phishing emails and other scams and inspire them to use stronger passwords.
Talk to law enforcement.
Each state has different requirements for reporting data breaches. Exchange legal authorities to discuss the violation, the time frame you need to notify affected parties, and precisely what needs to be reported.
Notify the victims and neutralize the violation.
Customers should be notified so they can take steps to change passwords, cancel credit cards, and otherwise protect themselves. Be honest and provide context to the situation. By quickly minimizing the damage and loss of confidence in your business,
Examples of high-profile business data leaks
Some notable data breaches have affected significant corporations, highlighting the importance of protecting data with the proper security measures for businesses, large and small.
Yahoo
In August 2013, hackers gained access to 3 billion Yahoo accounts. Although they did not gain access to any financial information from users, they received security questions and answers for all these accounts. At the time of the hack, Verizon acquired Yahoo and had security holes.
In June 2021, there was a massive data breach of 700 million LinkedIn users. A hacker called “God User” obtained much information, including email addresses, phone numbers, location, and gender. The hacker said he would sell the information he received.
In April 2019, approximately 530 million Facebook users were affected by a cyber attack. Usernames, phone numbers and Facebook IDs have been made public. In 2021, the data was released for free, indicating criminal intent behind the hack.
T-Mobile
Between November 2022 and January 2023, T-Mobile re-counted a breach moving 37 million accounts, which showed that the attacker gained access to restricted customer data (such as names, reports, and phone numbers) through the exploited API without putting confidential information at risk. The breach prompted T-Mobile to notify federal agencies and speak with law enforcement about the investigation.
T-Mobile then reported a second data breach in 2023, affecting 836 customers. Unlike other data breaches, this data breach resulted in the exposure of extensive personal data, thus leading to the risk of identity theft. The breach, discovered between late February and March 2023, exposed data such as names, contact information, Social Security facts and account PINs, prompting T-Mobile to reset PINs and offer a two-year protection service personality.
ChatGPT
OpenAI has confirmed the first violation of ChatGPT by disclosing ChatGPT Plus subscriber information and messages to others. The breach occurred in March 2023, when data from about 1.2% of active ChatGPT Plus users was exposed. This resulted in a bug in the ChatGPT open-source code that allowed user data to be confused due to requests being cancelled within a certain period.
