Rising Threats of data breaches requires new Data loss prevention (DLP) solutions and technologies

Rajesh Uppal October 4, 2021 Cyber, Industry Comments Off on Rising Threats of data breaches requires new Data loss prevention (DLP) solutions and technologies 695 Views

More data is being generated each year than in the whole of recorded human history, yet data security hasn’t kept up. Further, the IoT is growing at such a rapid rate, companies have a huge influx of data to comprehend. It’s thought as much as 2.5 quintillion bytes of data is being generated by the technology each day, according to IBM. In a world that’s become increasingly virtualized, data loss affects everyone and every action online and off. Yet, breaches go undetected for months, despite billion-dollar investments in products. Advancements in information technology (IT) have raised concerns about the risks to data associated with weak IT security, including vulnerability to viruses, malware, attacks and compromise of network systems and services.

The incidences of data breaches are increasing in magnitude each day, globally. The observers of data security and cyber-threats have predicted that cybercrime costs will grow by 15 percent globally in the next five years. The estimated cost for these cyber-security breaches is likely to reach $10.5 trillion annually in 2025. As per the data available on Statista, 155.8 million individuals were affected by data exposures in the US in 2020. The data breaches, which are the result of planned cyber-attacks, have skyrocketed amidst the pandemic. From private companies to governments, hackers do not spare anyone. Cyber threats like these not only pose a threat to the data or put the companies at risk of ransoms, but the organization’s reputation is also on the line concerning consumer trust. Thus, the cost of such attacks is high and not just in monetary terms.

Inadequate IT security may result in compromised confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the data due to unauthorized access. One such campaign which grabbed headlines was the SolarWinds hack, wherein hackers got access to thousands of companies and government offices that used software made by SolarWinds Corp. With such massive data security breaches, it is hard to trace the hackers, but it is ascertained that they are either financially motivated or with the aim of espionage. In such a rapidly changing digital landscape, hackers quickly adjust and take advantage of the same.

Mobile device usage and remote employees have been on the rise for several years now. While remote working can increase productivity and reduce burnout, it comes with its own set of security risks. Mobile employees often work without any network perimeter security, missing out on an important part of a layered security defense. Additionally, mobile devices can often mask telltale signs of phishing attacks and other security threats. Experts predict that one quarter of all data breaches will involve telecommuters, mobile devices, and off-premises assets.

Data Security

Data Security concerns the protection of data from accidental or intentional but unauthorised modification, destruction or disclosure through the use of physical security, administrative controls, logical controls, and other safeguards to limit accessibility. Data security policy and plan that would help significantly in critical situation by reacting with immediate response. Data security demands that first one should identify the sensitive or critical data whose compromise could result in an immense loss of reputation and revenue to a company. The access to sensitive data should be limited and only need based. Insider breaches, whether malicious or unintentional, have the potential to go undetected for weeks, months, or even years – causing devastating damage to a company. One of the ways of securing your data include Data Encryption, that converts the data into a code that cannot be easily read without a key that unlocks it.

Sensitive data in an organization should be locked away with strong passwords. Multi-factor authentication further making the hack much more unlikely and difficult. Some good examples of multi-factor authentication include biometrics, push notifications to phones, smartcards and token authentication. Data Masking can mask certain areas of data so personnel without the required authorisation cannot look at it. Data Erasure can ensure that no longer used data is completely removed and cannot be recovered by unauthorised people.

In addition, the data should be protected through updated software and efficient antivirus tools. Last on the list of important data security measures is having regular security checks and data backups. Data Security will form a large part of the new General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) being released by the EU. Data Breaches will result in large fines once the new regulations are in place so it will become more important to shield against any security threats as much as possible.

To ensure that individual privacy remains carefully protected, agencies should implement state-of-the-art information security practices. The rise in the number of cyber-attacks and the need to protect data are boosting the demand for DLP (data loss prevention) solutions, across various businesses.

Another critical undertaking would be to remain open to explore new methods to detect malware. Since hackers are coming up with innovative ways to attack, there is no other way to tackle it but upgrade the detection methods. On the part of DevOps, the focus needs to be placed on the products’ security aspect. The companies need to press the software suppliers to ensure deep safety as their products are put to use.to ensure safeguards against data security and cyber threats.

Apart from the companies’ safeguards, users need to be aware of their responsibilities and course of action against prevailing cyber threats. On a personal level, one must be vigilant about phishing attacks or deep-fake emails employees receive daily and some falling prey to it.

Data Loss Prevention (or DLP)

Technology providers are developing automated solutions that enable enterprises to counter the rising number and sophistication of attackers. The providers of DLP solutions integrated new safety features regarding cloud storage and online file storage services to help prevent data leaks.

Data Loss Prevention (or DLP) refers to a strategy that prevents end-users from exchanging or sending sensitive data outside of the corporate plexus. These software products enforce business rules that classify and protect confidential and sensitive data, preventing unauthorized end users from sharing information. Data Loss Prevention (DLP) is software designed to prevent and detect data breaches by monitoring and blocking confidential data at rest, in motion, or in use. DLP prevents accidental or unintentional loss or transmission of your organization’s sensitive data.

Also, with most of the technology shifting to the cloud infrastructures, the traditional perimeter model may not serve the purpose of providing security with, say, local firewalls. The wedge between modern cloud-native apps and legal security is widening. Therefore, security can no longer be an afterthought in software development. The security experts need to be a part of the design phase and build software or app that is reliable. Moreover, considering the new risks, there is a need that DevOps work in collaboration with DevSecOps to address the security threats.

Data loss prevention (DLP) is a set of tools and processes used to ensure that sensitive data is not lost, misused, or accessed by unauthorized users. DLP software classifies regulated, confidential and business-critical data and identifies violations of policies defined by organizations or within a predefined policy pack, typically driven by regulatory compliance such as HIPAA, PCI-DSS, or GDPR.

Once those violations are identified, DLP enforces remediation with alerts, encryption, and other protective actions to prevent end-users from accidentally or maliciously sharing data that could put the organization at risk. Data loss prevention software and tools monitor and control endpoint activities, filter data streams on corporate networks, and monitor data in the cloud to protect data at rest, in motion, and in use. DLP also provides reporting to meet compliance and auditing requirements and identify areas of weakness and anomalies for forensics and incident response.

A large amount of sensitive data is being shared across the cloud storage platforms. Hence, the companies offering DLP solutions integrated to cloud storage are expected to attract more buyers, owing to their additional functionalities. Technology providers are developing automated solutions that enable enterprises to counter the rising number and sophistication of attackers. The providers of DLP solutions integrated new safety features regarding cloud storage and online file storage services to help prevent data leaks. However, the lack of awareness about DLP solutions and performance concerns are restricting the organization from adopting the technology.

DARPA-backed Allure Security Launches Channel Program

The Waltham, Mass.-based security startup kicked off its channel program last month. The company, backed by $10 million in DARPA funding, is the brainchild of Columbia University scientists, who produced a technology that tracks and protects documents. Allure Security Channel Chief John Sullivan says the technology fits well with a solution provider’s existing portfolio. Benefits of the partner program include: co-marketing and lead generation, sales enablement and proof of concept to accelerate the sales cycle.

The company has 11 patents for its Allure DDR. The technology tags data with beacons and maps all locations where those beaconized documents are accessed. Allure DDR can also inject decoys into data flows to catch imposters or outsiders in the system. Sullivan says the technology is especially useful with the rise of GDPR in Europe.

Novo protects and tracks documents wherever they go–even outside the enterprise walls and without the need for agents. Novo cuts past the white noise of endpoint, network, and user level events and instead focuses on tracking the documents and files moving between people and devices, wherever they are. As documents flow through your existing network gateways, Novo tags real data with beacons, maps all locations where beaconized documents are accessed, and learns normal DocFlow behavior, alerting the moment suspicious or geofence violation activity is detected.

Developed with $10M in DARPA funding by a team of Columbia University scientists, our flagship product Novo is the first Data Loss Detection and Response (DDR) technology that automatically tracks document flows in and outside the enterprise network using machine-learned Document Behavior Analytics (DBA) and data-level deception to pinpoint the source of exfiltrvation in real time and take action to prevent data loss.

Allure DDR simplifies the security of critical documents by “beaconizing” them, so they can be tracked wherever they go. There are no agents to install, and Allure DDR alerts you to document activity that is dangerous, or could be malicious, regardless of whether it occurs inside or outside your network. This visibility into document flows helps you detect threats and manage third-party risk.

Allure DDR can also protect whole file systems by deploying beaconized decoy documents into your existing infrastructure. These decoys look and act like any other files, except that alerts are generated whenever they are accessed, whether from internal users overstepping their intended activities, or from an active Advanced Persistent Threat (APT).

Using sophisticated NLP and machine learning technology, Novo also injects decoys into data flows to catch imposters or insiders in the system. This means it doesn’t report on inferences or deductions; it alerts when actual events are taking place provides valuable attribution and forensics to stop data loss.

Data Loss Prevention Market

Data loss prevention (DLP) solutions are gaining traction, as enterprises are looking for different ways to reduce the risk of data leakage to external entities. The global Data Loss Prevention Market was worth US$ 1.2 billion in 2020, and it is anticipated to reach US$ 3.7 billion, progressing with an annual development rate (CAGR) of 23.5% between 2021 and 2026.

Drivers

One of the key factors that has helped the growth of the data loss prevention business is that organizations are increasingly focusing on meeting regulatory and compliance requirements and data stored in public and private clouds. In addition to this, factors like data breaches and the rise of cyber-attacks are driving the demand for DLP solutions. The rise in violations in a variety of industries, such as the oil and gas industry, retail industry, and banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), has driven the adoption of DLP. The data loss prevention market has seen tremendous growth lately because of the hike in security breaches, need for protection against theft, and transition
of locally stored data.

The surge in the usage of Internet, augmented demand from the telecommunications sector, and data security requirements from hackers are supposed to drive the market for data loss prevention technology. Around the world, data breaches are increasing every day. Therefore, increasing breaches are driving the growth of the global data loss prevention market, increasing the risk to data security and protection, and
systems become more decentralized due to the increasing way data is leaving organizations. Improved accessibility, inexpensive storage devices, and a significant increase in data volumes are driving the demand for global data loss prevention solutions.

Nonetheless, the growing trend of BYOD, the rise of digital attacks and cloud-based business models are estimated to create huge opportunities for the data loss prevention market during the foreseen period

Market Segmentation

Depending on the size of the organization, the data loss prevention market is segmented into small, medium and large companies. Large companies are expected to occupy the majority of the market due to the increased risk of data loss. On the basis of the application, the data loss prevention market is segmented into web and email protection, cloud storage, centralized management, incident response and workflow management, encryption, policies, standards and procedures. The cloud storage segment is foreseen to grow at the fastest rate as organizations utilize public and private cloud opportunities such as Office 365 and Amazon EB services. Therefore, the need for a data loss prevention solution has increased.

Based on the mode of deployment, the data loss prevention market is segmented into cloud and on-premises. The Cloud segment is predicted to grow at the fastest rate as it provides solutions for email, USB drivers, laptops and mobile devices. On a vertical basis, the data loss prevention market is segmented into government, healthcare, IT and telecommunications, BFSI, retail and logistics, aerospace and
defense, and others. The healthcare sector is determined to grow at the fastest rate during the outlook period. Medical organizations are using the cloud to back up and recover data, and the rapidly growing electronic health records demand data loss prevention solutions.

Healthcare Industry is set to Witness Significant Growth. The technological advancement in components, such as sensors, and their application in healthcare is opening doors for the adoption of industry 4.0 and data analytics. Hence, digital transformation is taking place rapidly. According to a survey by HIMSS, 60% of the healthcare organizations use the cloud for backup and data recovery. Also, 51% are using the cloud for its core clinical operations and data. Therefore, health-related data is moving more and more from paper to electronic records. It is determining changes in how healthcare organizations processing healthcare records are managing and protecting confidential data today. This has resulted in an increase in electronic health/medical records, which requires data loss prevention solutions.

Regional Analysis

North America Data Loss Prevention Market is expected to be the largest market in terms of revenue due to large-scale adoption of big data and cloud technologies, while Asia Pacific Data Loss Prevention Market is estimated to be the fastest growing industry. Growing economies such as China and India are believed to drive the data protection market in future. Companies in the Asia Pacific region are expected to start investing in data protection projects due to the continuing challenges of cyberattacks.

North American region has an advanced infrastructure capability, thus leading to the most significant revenue generation, in the market studied. Moreover, the enactment of stringent government initiatives to enhance the security of customer information is projected to boost the growth of the North American segment, over the forecast period. The US Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) applies to the patient health information, and states such as Massachusetts have enacted the rules covering all companies that hold personally identifiable information of the state residents.

The DLP market offers cloud-based and network solutions for mobile devices, email, USB controllers, and laptops. Skyhigh Networks, for example, uses personal health information (PHI), customer information, and personally identifiable information (PII). The advent of DLP technology provides information technology and security personnel with a comprehensive 360-degree view of specific locations, rotations, and information utilization across the enterprise.

Businesses are concerned about the upcoming audit and want to keep data compliant with complex regulatory trust DLP technology. This
technology helps those who want to protect their property data from security breaches caused by increased employee mobility and the emergence of innovative channels. The success of protecting sensitive data in the cloud and virtual models has created new opportunities for data loss prevention technologies.

In May 2019 -, Trend Micro launched new cloud and container security solutions. It is the complete security from a single solution protecting across cloud and container workloads. This will elevate protection across the entire DevOps lifecycle and runtime stack. In Oct 2018 , Cisco Inc. announced the acquisition of Duo Security, a cloud-based tools provider to prevent security breaches. Duo’s technology is a highly strategic addition to Cisco’s portfolio and will extend its intent-based networking into multi-cloud environments.

Top Key Players Include Symantec Corporation, CA Technologies, Trend Micro Incorporated, GTB Technologies Inc., Cisco Systems Inc.,
Digital Guardian, Inc., Forcepoint LLC, McAfee LLC, Zecurion, Absolute Software Corporation, Proofpoint, Inc., and Gemalto N.V.