Every year, the world celebrates 28th January as Data Privacy Day!
The importance of this day lies in the fact that digital security is an important consideration and reality of our times. Online Data Privacy is a fundamental need of our times and encourages businesses to take actions to safeguard against cyberattacks.
When people want to understand data security, I usually ask them to imagine a scenario-
‘Imagine you are being taken into a room full of strangers and being asked about the following-
- Your sexual behavior
- Financial details and information
- Health situations
- About your family
- Job-status and future plans
Would you want to answer or let other people know about all the above issues?’
Data Security: Meaning and Definition
In very simple words, data security refers to the protection of important data and files using technologies. The said technologies can be both hardware as well as software. These securities prevent data from getting exposed to external threats that are aiming to create mischief.
In the past few years, Data Security has expanded to include-
- Administrative Controls
- Safeguarding Techniques
- Physical Controls
- Security Layers
- Authentication
- Storage
- Access
With most businesses slowly realizing the importance of data, there is an inherent need to gather, govern, store, process, and analyze the same. This can range from consumer information to financial details to other kinds of personal information, which can be used against someone for extortion or ransom.
List of 5 Steps to Improve the Data Security Process
In this section, we are going to list down five steps that can help in creating the best data security process for businesses.
Step 1: Securing the nature of the Data Itself-
Most businesses and individuals pay attention to putting up firewalls, using secure network connectivity, etc. However, in technical security terms, this is referred to as securing the perimeter. Experts suggest that in addition o securing the perimeter, attention should be paid to the nature of the data itself. A single set of data is utilized and accessed by many different individuals. This is where attention and concern should be attached.
Step 2: Paying Attention to Internal Threats-
Continuing from the first step, it is important to know who has access to the data. This means employees, customers, vendors, etc. Statistics suggest that 30% of all data security violations take place because of the role played by someone who is internal. This means that even without any external influence, you can and will lose data if you are not paying attention to your internal team. Assign credentials and change access to correct this threat.
Step 3: Use Secure End-To-End Encryption-
According to experts, businesses should look at using PKI certifications for improving the data security process. PKI refers to Public Key Infrastructure and uses secure encryption between the sender and receiver of the data. The encrypted handshake is one way to not only track who has access to the data, but also ensure that it is never getting into the wrong hands. Contrary to popular belief, PKI certification is not expensive and small businesses can go for it easily.
Step 4: Strong Data Security Software-
Step four is a combination of using many security software solutions to improve data security. This includes using secure internet bandwidth, antivirus solutions, firewalls, password protectors, and so on. As a business, you need to know that cybercriminals are experts in finding out the weakest link in your security chain. This is why all the security software solutions should be powerful and be able to complement one another.
Step 5: Train your Employees to deal with Data Issues-
The last, if not the most important step involves training your employees for working with security solutions. They need to understand that ensuring the integrity of data is essential for the survival of the company where they are working. Having periodic training sessions for employees will not only be helpful in making them understand why data is important but also to create a tech-driven mindset and approach.
The Final Word
In the next few years, data security threats are going to become even more complex and require closer understanding and investments. If you are a business owner struggling with cybersecurity issues, you should look to follow the above five steps.
