Does the subject of data security give you brain fog? You’re not alone. Organizations have a habit of overcomplicating digital communications security; it’s tied up with compliance, digital transformation and IT.
We believe security should be nothing less than spectacularly simple. So, here are five tips to streamline the way your organization shares sensitive data.
1: Make sure the policy is clear
What information do you need to send securely? Through which channel and with what level of security?
Employees want to do the right thing, but they need processes to be simple. So, to ensure all employees are singing from the same hymn sheet, provide a clear overview of the types of information that your organization handles, and identify the ways each should be shared. Make this plan accessible for all staff.
2: Secure your files and attachments
Sending sensitive information in an email attachment? First check that it is encrypted. This ensures that, if the worst happens and your email is intercepted in transit, it cannot be accessed by a third party.
If possible, always utilize multi-factor authentication (MFA) to authenticate the recipient of your communication. This will prevent incorrect individuals gaining access to your all-important files.
Most email clients limit file sizes to 25MB. So, when it comes to sending large presentations or reports, this can cause some headaches. Third party file transfer platforms are handy but first check they are on your organization's approved supplier list. They may not be as secure as you think!
3: Fail to prepare and prepare to fail
Multi-factor authentication ensures only the intended recipient can gain access to sensitive data. To do this, you can use unique codes sent via text message, or a pre-agreed password.
To keep things simple in the future, it is helpful to gain the relevant information from recipients sooner rather than later - whether it’s a mobile number or an email address. You can then work with confidence that there will be no complications or delays when it matters most.
4: Make security the preferable option
Sometimes, you have to sell security to your recipient. They may not see the benefit or necessity of multi-factor authentication or security in general. But, this often changes quickly when you explain the benefits of, as well as the risks and repercussions of, poor data protection activity.
5: Make sure you can act if something goes wrong
You can do a lot to prevent mistakes. Unfortunately, no organization can completely rule out a data breach. It’s important, therefore, that you can take immediate action if and when the worst happens.
For IT and security professionals, activity logs enable incident identification, providing a reliable overview of email activity.
For all of the above and more, we can help. Get in touch with a product expert to find out how.
