It is critically important for successful organizations to protect their data. If there are vulnerabilities in your network, it can lead to data breaches or cyberattacks that result in sensitive data being compromised and extended network downtime.
These attacks can cost your organization hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair your network following an attack and in some cases, cause permanent network damage.
These consequences can be detrimental to organizations if compliance processes are not followed resulting in legal ramifications as well. For this reason, data protection should be a top priority to avoid these consequences from happening.
Coeo understands how important data protection is and has delivered thousands of security solutions to improve network security and help protect data to avoid cyberattacks and data breaches.
By the end of this article, you will know what a data protection strategy is, the ways to develop a successful strategy, and whether it is a good tool for your organization.
What is a data protection strategy?
It is important to protect your sensitive data to avoid it from being compromised by malicious actors.
A data protection strategy is a plan that outlines measures and security practices to safeguard sensitive information to ensure its confidentiality and protect the data.
A data protection strategy ensures your data is secure while also making it available to all authorized users looking to access it.
Because of this, a well-developed plan catered to your organization that secures your data should be an essential part of your security priorities.
If you would like to speak with our team to learn more about data protection or ask any questions you may have you can schedule an appointment.
The ways to ensure a successful data protection strategy
A data protection strategy is important and can improve your organization’s security. However, it is also important to understand how to develop a successful data protection strategy that is reliable and ensures your data is secure.
The ways to ensure a successful data protection strategy include:
Identify and classify data
One of the first steps to creating a successful data protection strategy is identifying the data stored in your network and classifying it based on sensitivity and its importance to your organization.
Categories to classify data can include personal and financial data, intellectual property, and proprietary information.
It is important to classify the data and provide different security policies for each group so that sensitive data has stricter security policies than data that is not as sensitive.
Conduct a risk assessment
Another best practice for creating a successful data protection strategy is to conduct a risk assessment within your network.
Conducting a risk assessment helps identify potential threats and vulnerabilities within your network that could lead to your data being compromised.
When assessing risks in your network, it is important to consider factors such as cyber threats, insider threats, and business continuity.
Establish data protection policies
After identifying and classifying data and conducting a risk assessment, it is important to establish data protection policies based on the vulnerabilities and risks found within the data categories.
It is important to develop data protection policies based on the potential risks identified and data classifications that outline how data should be handled, secured, and accessed within your organization’s network.
Within these policies, it is important to include guidelines for data encryption and retention and access controls.
Implement technical and access controls
Technical controls such as encryption and data access controls can be used in your data protection strategy to secure your data more effectively.
Security solutions such as Data Loss Prevention (DLP) and Intrusion Detection and Response (IDR) can also provide technical controls.
Using Role-Based Access Controls (RBAC) also enables you to restrict data based on user roles and permissions. Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) also enables you to add an extra layer of security to verify authorized access to data.
Educate and train employees on data protection
Lastly, it is important to provide education and training to your employees on how to protect data and why data protection is important.
Educating employees on the best practices, security policies, and the importance of safeguarding data will enable you to create a work culture centered around security awareness and accountability across the organization resulting in better security.
Is a data protection strategy a good tool for your organization?
Now you understand what a data protection strategy is and how to ensure a successful one. However, it is also important for your organization to determine whether a data protection strategy is a good tool for your organization.
If your organization is looking to patch vulnerabilities to improve network security and secure data within your network, designing a data protection strategy may be a good decision.
A data protection strategy may be a good tool for your organization if you have sensitive data in your network that needs to be properly secured.
Additionally, organizations that must comply with different data security rules like HIPAA compliances for healthcare organizations, learning what a data protection strategy is and the ways to create a successful strategy may be a good decision for your organization.
However, if your organization already has reliable data security, you may not need a data protection strategy.
Implementing a data protection strategy in your organization
Now you know what a data protection strategy is, the ways to ensure a successful and reliable data protection strategy, and whether a data protection strategy is a good tool for your organization.
This will enable you to determine if your organization should invest in a data protection strategy.
No organization can afford to deal with a security breach that leads to sensitive data being compromised or cyberattacks that lead to network downtime and cost your organization hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair the network.
To avoid the consequences of a cyberattack or data breach, it is important to understand what a data protection strategy is and the ways to develop a successful protection strategy to improve security.
Coeo understands how important eligible data security is and has delivered thousands of security solutions to organizations to improve their security and help them avoid cyberattacks and data breaches.
We want you to understand what a data protection strategy is and how to create a successful strategy so you can determine whether a strategy is a good tool for your organization.
If you would like to speak with our team to learn more about data protection or ask any questions you may have you can schedule an appointment.
Now that you understand what a data protection strategy is and the ways to ensure a successful one, read this article to learn about the top data loss prevention tools:
