Data Breach
What is a Data Breach?
A data breach is any unauthorized access of information. It can be something as nefarious as data theft or something as unintentional as data leakage or information disclosure.
How does a data breach occur?
A data breach occurs any time information is viewed by an unauthorized party. A breach can be accidental (such as coworkers sharing hardware and one seeing info on the other’s machine), malicious insiders/outsiders (such as the deliberate accessing of information to inflict damage or harm), or from a lost/stolen device that is unencrypted or unlocked and contains sensitive information.
Who is responsible for a cloud data breach?
In most cases, the breached organization or the specific data managers are responsible for a cloud-based data breach. It is possible that, despite their best efforts, data owners may fall victim to hackers, but in most cases, human error is responsible for security vulnerabilities.
What data protection solutions can you use in the case of a data breach?
In the event of a data breach, you want to secure your information, your people, and your systems.
Information
The first step will be to secure your information by removing any publicly posted data from online. If data was posted inadvertently on your website, remove it quickly; if posted on other websites, search elsewhere to ensure that all versions or duplicates of the information have been removed.
People
The first step for your people will be to establish a data breach response team that can handle both the public-facing and internal components of the recovery. These teams may consist of legal counsel, human resources, IT, operations, investor relations, management, and organizational leadership.
Systems
When data breaches happen, it’s critical to act quickly to mitigate the damage, strengthen any vulnerabilities, patch any openings, and stop additional data loss. Take all affected equipment offline, but do not power it down until your forensic team has inspected it. Additionally, update passwords and credentials of authorized users. Until you do so, your system will remain vulnerable if hackers gained access to login information.
How can you prevent a cloud data breach?
You can prevent data breaches and pass internal security audits by implementing several of the following safeguards.
- Data Classification helps you audit and inventory the data you have and the degree to which it needs to be protected. More sensitive data requires higher degrees of security.
- Firewalls help separate one network from another and are the first line of defense for putting protective borders around sensitive information.
- Data Encryption offers one of the highest levels of virtual security, by masking sensitive data in cryptography, it prevents hackers from gaining easy access. Encryption isn’t foolproof, but it offers the strongest and most immediate line of defense against cyberthreats and data thieves.
- Physical Security also protects your data by limiting the access that employees, visitors, and thieves have to hardware and network peripherals.
- Cloud Security Services attend to large-scale cloud-based networks where data is most often stored. These services offer security protocols at the storage level, as well as the endpoint level where data breaches can originate.
What are the consequences of a cloud security data breach?
The consequences for a data breach can be so all-encompassing that they pose a potential existential threat to some companies.
Regulatory compliance varies from region to region, country to country. If an organization experiences a cloud security data breach, there are specific regulations about the manner in which potential victims are notified and the timeline on which the company makes notification and tries to rectify the situation. Additionally, the company may face penalties if the notifications are not handled within the required window after the breach. Some jurisdictions require that, after the victims are notified in a timely manner, authorities must be made aware of the breach as well.
If the company is large enough to do business in multiple regions or on multiple continents, the regulatory compliance can be time-consuming and convoluted. It is more than a nuisance, however, as possible penalties, restitution, and resulting lawsuits can cripple an organization financially.
A cloud security data breach can also impede other business dealings. For instance, a data breach can compromise the sale of an organization and its solvency as a worthwhile investment by a corporate buyer.
In addition to punitive results that can adversely affect a company’s solvency after a cloud security data breach, they may also suffer from widespread damage to their reputation. Data is the most valuable asset a modern company can hold, and some companies’ entire business model is built on secure data storage, movement, and utilization. If a cloud-based company experiences a data breach, it invites a lack of confidence in their ability to manage their sole product or service line.
In short, a cloud security data breach can be financially and socially catastrophic for even the largest companies.
HPE and cloud data breaches
HPE offers a variety of solutions to help organizations protect against data breaches.
HPE GreenLake: Suite of cloud services that provides a secure, scalable, and flexible IT infrastructure. With HPE GreenLake, organizations can take advantage of advanced security features, including data encryption, identity and access management, and continuous monitoring to detect and respond to threats.
HPE Services: HPE offers a range of consulting and support services to help organizations assess their security posture, design and implement robust security strategies, and respond to incidents. This includes services such as risk assessments, security architecture design, and incident response planning.
HPE Storage Solutions: HPE provides secure storage solutions that include features like data encryption, secure data replication, and compliance with industry standards. HPE's storage solutions are designed to protect data from unauthorized access and ensure data integrity.
HPE Data Protection and Backup Solutions: HPE offers a range of data protection solutions, including HPE StoreOnce for efficient and secure data backup and recovery.
By leveraging these solutions, organizations can enhance their cybersecurity posture, protect sensitive data, and reduce the risk of data breaches.