In today’s digital world, data is one of the most valuable assets an organization possesses. As such, implementing a strong data-centric security strategy is critical for protecting sensitive information from compromise. Based on my experience, here are the 5 key steps I recommend for creating an effective data-centric security program:
1. Identify Your Crown Jewels
The first step is to identify your organization’s crown jewels – the data assets that are most critical to protect. This typically includes:
- Customer data – names, addresses, payment information etc.
- Intellectual property – proprietary research, trade secrets, patents etc.
- Employee data – salaries, health information, personal data etc.
Knowing what data matters most allows you to prioritize security efforts. I recommend creating a data classification schema that labels data as high, medium or low sensitivity.
2. Understand How Data Flows Through Your Organization
Next, you need to comprehensively map how data flows through your systems and business processes. This provides visibility into points of risk.
Key questions to answer include:
- How is sensitive data created, processed and stored?
- Who has access to this data?
- Is data shared with third parties?
Documenting data flows allows you to identify potential blind spots and areas of high risk.
3. Implement Strong Access Controls
With visibility into your critical data and flows, you can implement targeted access controls to reduce exposure. Important measures include:
- Least privilege access – Only provide users access to the data they absolutely need to do their jobs.
- Multi-factor authentication – Require additional factors like one-time codes for accessing sensitive data.
- Encryption – Encrypt data both in transit and at rest.
Robust access controls significantly reduce the attack surface.
4. Monitor and Log Access
To detect suspicious activity, you need to monitor access and log events related to critical data. Focus on:
- Unauthorized access attempts
- Unusual data access patterns
- Abnormal downloads or transfers
- Changes in permissions
Detailed logging provides an audit trail to support investigations.
5. Prepare an Incident Response Plan
Despite best efforts, data breaches can still occur. Your strategy should include a formal incident response plan that outlines:
- Escalation procedures for breach notification
- Containment strategies to limit damage
- Steps to investigate root cause
- Specific actions to remediate vulnerabilities
Preparing in advance enables rapid response and recovery.
In Summary
Implementing a data-centric approach to security requires assessing your sensitive data, understanding data flows, improving access controls, monitoring access, and preparing response plans. By taking these key steps, you can gain greater assurance your organization’s crown jewels are locked down. Revisiting the strategy periodically is recommended as both the data landscape and threats continuously evolve over time.
