Enterprise data is everywhere: on-premises (inside your network perimeter), on mobile devices, and in the cloud. And your employees access this sensitive corporate data with multiple devices, often with their personal mobile devices. While cloud and mobile applications create greater freedom for employees to work anywhere, IT executives need to re-imagine an information strategy that safeguards data in this changing hybrid environment.
How do organizations protect this data in motion?
“Protecting Your Sensitive Data Everywhere,” a recently released Symantec whitepaper, examines the challenges enterprises face in protecting information on-premises, on mobile devices, and in the cloud. The white paper also explains how comprehensive visibility, secure access, and real-time protection can help organizations better protect their data regardless where it’s stored or how it’s being used.
What follows are a few highlights from the “Protecting Your Sensitive Data Everywhere” Symantec white paper.
Cybersecurity is a top priority for executives
Executives are well aware of the high-profile data breaches making the headlines these days; in fact, cybersecurity is ranked as Number 3 of the top 10 risks facing organizations surveyed.
And while we know that a publicized data breach can negatively affect a company’s brand, there are some other apparent concerns for security lapses. A study by the Ponemon Institute placed the average total cost of a data breach at $3.79 million.
Data breaches can also lower investor confidence and open the door to competitors to gain market share. Overall, a cyber attack on an organization can have extremely detrimental affects—and C-level executives are hearing the call to strengthen their defensives.
However, with the changing threat landscape, what measures can enterprises take to protect themselves against these data breaches?
Three keys to protect sensitive corporate data
The digital landscape is in constant flux. Data is traversing past the boundaries of traditional, on-premises firewalls. In the past, IT teams had greater visibility into where data resides, who had access to it, and where it was going. But today that’s all changing.
Fortunately, businesses can focus on three key measures to safeguard their data:
- Enterprises need Comprehensive Visibility to know where their information is across the cloud, on-premises, and mobile devices.
- Customers need Secure Access measures in place to have confidence that the right people are accessing the right data with ease.
- Finally, customers need Real-Time Protection for data that is at rest or in motion.
In addition to applying these three strategic approaches, organizations must take a holistic and unified approach for addressing the challenges of securing data in transit.
Integrated Approach to Data Security
In the past, organizations used point solutions that worked for singular problems (for example, only securing mobile data or only addressing access management). Today it’s different as businesses often exist in a hybrid environment. IT teams approaching security in a singular or piecemeal way not only augment complexity, but create more gaps in data security. Enterprises need to deploy an integrated approach.
Here’s how organizations can better protect their data with Symantec's comprehensive Information Protection solutions.
Next-generation Access Control Platform for the Cloud
Symantec Identity Access Manager fills the gap for the cloud where a traditional firewall doesn’t exist. This next-generation access control platform integrates Single Sign-On (SSO) with strong authentication, augmented access control and user management. Overall, Symantec Identity Access Manager offers users more control and convenience for their web and cloud-based applications.
User friendly authentication to protect networks, applications, and data
Symantec Data Loss Prevention includes protection for cloud environments and mobile devices. Organizations need the ability to extend their security beyond the borders of their traditional on-premises network. Symantec Data Loss Prevention helps organizations increase visibility and control so they know where data is, how it’s being used, and how to better protect it. Meanwhile, Symantec Validation and ID Protection Service (VIP) is a cloud-based strong two-factor authentication service that enables enterprises to secure access to networks and applications. This helps enterprises know that whoever is accessing the data is really who they are—thus preventing access by malicious cybercriminals. Symantec Validation and ID Protection Service provides two-factor and risk-based token-less authentication, is based on open standards, and is easy to integrate. And underlying these solutions is Symantec Encryption, which includes endpoint, file and folder and email encryption.
Overall, Symantec can help IT organizations gain more visibility and control of how users access data wherever it resides—all with an integrated and strategic approach.
Looking for more insights on the rapidly changing data protection challenges? Download the full “Protecting Your Sensitive Data Everywhere” white paper.
Learn more:
Symantec Data Loss Prevention
Symantec Identity Access Manager
Symantec Validation and ID Protection Service (VIP)