Data security has always been important to businesses. But nowadays, its vitality becomes more pronounced. Why? The use of data is tightly woven into the day-to-day activities of enterprises now more than ever. From marketing to competitor analysis to payment methods, data, particularly sensitive data, has earned its keep. Today, we’ll go into the common data security challenges enterprises face and how to mitigate them.
What’s going on?
Just before we launch into the challenges, let’s take a minute to familiarise with the terrain. It’s important to note that organisations constantly stage a fight—a losing one nonetheless—against cyberattacks of all kinds.
The increased spending on cybersecurity in recent years proves that enterprises take the whole thing seriously. Regardless, the data security challenges still seem insurmountable.
Why is data security important?
The evolution of the workforce from traditional to remote and hybrid created wide gaps in the organisation that let cybercriminals in. and these vulnerabilities expose the enterprise to several consequences ranging from mild to severe.
First, there’s unnecessary expenditure. To curtail the effects of a data breach, lots of money will be spent. Although some companies take out insurances to cover the cost, it doesn’t get the job done every time. Factor in the lawsuits from affected customers, and the numbers can only go higher.
There’s also the reputational damage to consider. Seeing as no one would trust a brand prone to losing data integrity to constant cyberattacks, organisations need to embrace data security to avoid terrible fates.
Also, data protection regulations around the world emphasise the importance of data security. For instance, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) mandates appropriate data security measures as part of its basic requirements. And non-compliance comes with hefty fines and penalties.
In 2022, Facebook was fined €265 million after personal data (facebook IDs, location, phone number, email address, etc.) was found on a website for hackers. Another instance: The British ICO issued a €20.4 million fine to Marriott International for failing to secure customers’ personal data. This incidence compromised almost 339 million guest records—personal and sensitive data included.
Top data security challenges enterprises face
Although businesses now take bold steps towards data security, it still isn’t 100% sufficient. There are some challenges that make securing data stressful—if not impossible. Here’s a compilation of a few data security challenges enterprises face for awareness sake.
-
- Zero visibility into organizations footprint
One thing’s sure: different operational teams make up a successful enterprise. Since data is the heart of each activity, each operational team will have it’s own data and database—very good and efficient. Now, where the problem lies is visibility or transparency. For large organisations with numerous departments, the central team (admin) usually finds it difficult to keep track of every piece of data used, stored, etc. by each team.
This makes data security tedious; why? Without knowledge of what’s what, we can’t know exactly what security measures to use.
-
- Larger attack surface
Nowadays, individuals generate large amounts of data daily, which organisations in turn use. Sounds nice and cool till it’s time to secure it. Although large corporations benefit greatly from their large pool of data, securing it requires so much technology, money, and effort. The sheer amount of data leaves several ends unprotected and grants cybercriminals an attack opportunity.
In addition, employees use repeated passwords to access personal and professional devices and even connect to insecure networks. That way, they unknowingly leave the door open for malicious actors. With malware becoming very easy to use, malicious actors need alarmingly little to cause significant data issues for their target.
-
- Shortage of skills
Managing cloud and digital infrastructure is a task that requires top-notch skills. You can’t just pick up any John Doe on the streets to help secure data; professionals are needed for the job. Normally, it’s not easy getting skilled workers in any industry. That the “great resignation” is affecting many organisations, the lack of skilled workers poses a challenge to data security for enterprises.
-
- Increased compliance requirements
Although data breaches disturb the operations of the organisation, customers and clients end up on the receiving end. At the end of the day, it’s the personal data of the individual that leaks.
So, to curb these, data protection laws and regulations were enacted. These regulations, like the GDPR of the EU, the Nigerian Data Protection Regulation (NDPR), etc., grant data subjects (data owners) more control over their data and how it’s used. As a consequence, they pose a challenge to enterprises due to their stringent rules.
Next is the cost. To properly comply with data security laws, organisations need to implement functional systems to keep track of compliance activities, e.g., GDPR compliance software. And such software doesn’t come cheap.
Besides the cost of procuring these systems, their installments don’t come cheap. That’s not including the regular upgrade and cost of hiring a data compliance officer.
-
- Keeping up with rapid growth
While growth is a welcome development in every institution, it comes with inconveniences also. Managing data security and privacy solutions can test even the most experienced professionals in the field.
For one, budget doesn’t always increase with the pressing demand for better security systems that growth brings, putting treams already struggling with data security under more pressure. The urgent need to install new systems quickly may lead to a situation where maintaining control becomes a concern for CISOs.
-
- Ensuring endpoint security in hybrid work environment
Remote work is now part of the grand scheme for enterprises that wish to stay up-to-date and retain talents. In fact, it’s recommended that every organisation finds a way to embrace remote work fully, or at least, try out hybrid work mode. Then, securing each endpoint becomes necessary to protect the enterprise. The new landscape and policies that come with hybrid work prove a challenge to data security.
This concludes the top 6 data security challenges enterprises face.
Tips to mitigate these challenges
Now that you know what challenges you’ll most likely face, here’s how your organisation can improve data security.
Reduce the attack surface
This is achieved by placing an access limit on sensitive data. This additional security control pops up right before accessing critical business info. This approach, referred to as the zero trust approach, is used by approximately two-thirds of businesses.
Develop a long-term data security strategy
If you want to establish long-term data security, the first thing is to develop a strategy that deals with every conceivable challenge. This strategy should highlight
how the enterprise plans to handle the different types of cyberattacks and breaches.
And explain how each operational team should react to prevent any fatal breaches.
Implement premium data management processes
Managing data processes manually can be extremely time- and resource-consuming. However, data management is of extreme importance for maintaining data integrity, quality, and security. To do this effectively, make use of modern data management tools to automate repetitive but vital tasks to reduce the burden.
Conclusion
Data security challenges can be discouraging but not insurmountable. Check out the various types of data security and find measures that work well for your business. In case you don’t know the next step to take, you should patronise a data protection consultancy for a thorough assessment of your system.
At Johan Consults, we provide an in-depth analysis of your organisation’s data security in compliance with the GDPR, NDPR, and other data regulations. Contact us today for a free initial consultation.
