Implementing Secure Data Storage: 5 Best Practices
Data is undoubtedly one of an organization’s most precious assets. Storing large volumes of data in one location has become almost effortless with simple and cost-effective solutions like cloud-based storage settings. However, corporations are no longer just concerned about space.
With only 5% of company files securely secured on average, data storage security is currently one of the most important objectives for businesses.
First, it is critical to comprehend the various security hazards to data. There are hazards associated with physical access to data storage systems.
For example, when picking a physical location to keep secret data, ensure that it is difficult to tamper with or recover data from.
Aside from physical hazards, many cybersecurity threats target networks, servers, and other cloud infrastructure data. Consider the following data storage security best practices to deal with such security breaches.
What Exactly Is Data Storage?
Data storage refers to the digital recording of files and documents and subsequent storage in a system for future use. Storage systems may use electromagnetic, optical, or other media to preserve and restore data. Data storage allows you to easily back up files for safekeeping and speedy recovery in the case of a computer crash or cyberattack.
Data can be stored on physical hard drives, disk drives, USB drives, or virtually on the cloud. The crucial thing is ensuring your files are backed up and readily available in case your systems fail beyond repair. Some of the most significant elements to consider regarding data storage are reliability, the robustness of security mechanisms, and the cost of implementing and maintaining the infrastructure. Browsing through various data storage systems and applications will help you make the right decision for your company’s needs.
5 Best Practices in Securing Data Storage
Secure data storage is critical to protecting sensitive information from unwanted access, theft, or misuse. Here are five effective practices to secure data storage:
1. Take Inventory of Your Data
Data and system asset inventories and maps serve as the cornerstone of the security and privacy program. Data sets must contain useful information about the categories of data collected, as well as where they are stored and transported, to identify third parties who can access the information. Mappings help teams understand how data flows.
During this step, take inventory of the servers, devices, and cloud services utilized to gather, store, and send data. Include information saved on mobile and personal devices, such as PC hard disks and flash drives. This is critical for achieving subject data standards, recognizing employee risks and training opportunities, and maintaining effective data security management.
2. Minimize the Data You Keep
Less data equals fewer opportunities for the bad guys. Limit data collection and retention to the minimum required for the intended purposes. Personally identifiable information should only be kept as long as necessary to perform the intended tasks. At the start of data collection, capturing only the required information is better. Scrub data sets to eliminate any additional personal information that is not required for the intended purpose of collection.
Retaining personal data for an extended period raises the likelihood of a data breach if and when one occurs. Reducing the quantity of data retained reduces the risk of identity theft and fraud. Additionally, implementing mechanisms to anonymize the data appropriately can reduce the risk.
3. Protect Data with a Trifecta of Controls
To protect personal information, implement three types of controls: physical, technical, and administrative. These precautions are intended to limit the risk of data degradation, loss, or manipulation while minimizing the possibility of illegal access.
It may appear impossible, but a simple compromise can begin at the bottom level with physical access. These breaches are frequently associated with illegal access to stored papers; for example, data may have been left in an unsecured cabinet or on a printer by accident. Alternatively, a dishonest employee may have discovered a way to monitor how other team members type their credentials into critical systems to get access. Mother Nature can also play a role in this situation, as the integrity of the physical infrastructure can be compromised after a natural disaster.
Physical safeguards are put in place to reduce these dangers. Simple and effective strategies include:
- Storing physical drives and papers in locked cabinets or storerooms.
- training employees to keep their laptops closed as much as possible, and
- creating access limits for staff in many locations.
To mitigate threats, consider adopting software and other encryption and multi-factor authentication solutions. Finally, administrative controls that use rules, procedures, and personnel training should be developed to guarantee best practices are followed.
4. Don’t Make Your Data “Trash” Someone’s Treasure
The adage “one person’s trash is another’s treasure” applies to information security regarding identity theft and data infiltration. As a result, it is critical to ensure that personally identifiable and protected information is securely stored, retention periods adhere to requirements, and data is correctly disposed of.
Properly dispose of physical copies of personal and protected data. Ensure that regulatory requirements for collecting specific protected data types are met. Additionally, delete all data on devices, flash drives, and hard drives before disposing of them. Remember any PCs that are being refurbished. Those devices must be erased and overwritten to prevent the recovery of old files.
Get Proactive and Establish a Plan
Data breaches are costly on multiple fronts, including financial, reputational, and consumer trust. To offset these costs, ensure you have an incident response plan in place. Assign a senior staff person to coordinate response activities with a backup point of contact and keep a written record outlining the contingency plan to guarantee that operations continue. Employees should also be assigned specific roles and duties. Strategic incident response is critical for responding quickly, minimizing the impact on your business operations, and mitigating the possibility of further losses.
Conclusion
Enterprises must be proactive as regulations evolve and security threats grow in volume and complexity. Prioritizing information security and privacy plans, policies, and procedures to protect data throughout the organization’s life cycle is critical. By using these data privacy best practices, your corporation can lessen its business risks.
