In an age where personal information has become an invaluable commodity and the need to protect it is an essential concern for all companies and individuals of all sizes. A single breach could expose customers to identity theft or other financial harm and expose companies to penalties, reputational harm and even lawsuits. There are a variety of methods to safeguard personal information as well as prevent hacking or theft.
TAKE STOCK
Take stock of the amount of sensitive information your company holds in computer files and on servers and devise a strategy to keep it only as long as is necessary. This could include taking stock of devices that record information, such as PIN pads and surveillance cameras, as well monitoring connections to external sources, such as the internet, computers used to support your network by service providers, or even a digital copier.
SCALE DOWN
Limit access to sensitive information to those who require it. This decreases the chance of an insider threat or loss from hackers. Pro tip: Use the principle of least privilege. This means that you grant new accounts the smallest level of access to sensitive https://datafinest.pro/2020/06/17/data-management-by-data-room/ data, and increasing that privilege only as they grow in seniority or job necessity.
LOCK IT
Make sure your passwords are secure, complicated and unique. Passwords that are easy to guess could be hacked in a matter of minutes and used to gain unauthorized access. Do not send passwords via email in plain text and secure all files that contain confidential or private data.