Address High Scale Google Drive Data Exposure with Bulk Remediation
Millions of organizations around the globe use SaaS applications like Google Drive to store and exchange company files internally and externally. Because of the collaborative nature of these applications, company files can be accessed easily by the public, held externally with vendors, or shared within private emails. Data risk exposure exponentially increases as companies scale operations and internal data. Shared files through SaaS applications like Google Drive enable significant business-critical data exposure that could potentially get into the wrong hands.
As technology companies experience mass layoffs, IT professionals should take extra caution when managing shared file permissions. For example, if a company recently laid off an employee that shared work files externally with their private email, the former employee will still have access to the data. Moreover, if the previous employee begins working for a competitor, they can share sensitive company files, reports and data with their new employer. Usually, once internal links are publicly shared with an external source, the owner of the file is unable to see who else has access. This poses an enormous security risk for organizations as anyone, including bad actors or competitors, can easily steal personal or proprietary information within the shared documents.
Digitization and Widespread SaaS Adoption
Smaller, private companies tend to underestimate their risk of data exposure when externally sharing files. An organization is still at risk even if they only have a small number of employees. On average, one employee creates 50 new SaaS assets every week. It only takes one publicly-shared asset to expose private company data.
The growing adoption of SaaS applications and digital transformation are exacerbating this problem. In today’s digital age, companies are becoming more digitized and shifting from on-premises or legacy systems to the cloud. Within 24 months, a typical business’s total SaaS assets will multiply by four times. As organizations grow and scale, the amount of SaaS data and events becomes uncontrollable for security teams to maintain. Without the proper controls and automation in place, businesses are leaving a massive hole in their cloud security infrastructure that only worsens as time goes on. The longer they wait to tackle this challenge, the harder it becomes to truly gain confidence in their SaaS security posture.
Pros and Cons of Bulk Remediating
Organizations looking to protect themselves from this risk should look to bulk remediate their data security. By bulk remediating, IT leaders can quickly ensure a large amount of sensitive company files remain private and are unable to be accessed by third parties without explicit permission. This is a quick way to guarantee data security as organizations scale and become digitized.
However, as an organization grows, they will likely retain more employees, vendors, and shared drives. When attempting to remediate inherited permissions for multiple files, administrators face the difficulty of ensuring accurate and appropriate access levels for each file and user. It requires meticulous planning and a thorough understanding of the existing permission structure to avoid unintended consequences.
Coordinating and executing bulk remediation actions can also be time-consuming and resource-intensive, particularly when dealing with shared drives that contain a vast amount of files and multiple cloud, developer, security, and IT teams with diverse access requirements. The process becomes even more intricate when trying to strike a balance between minimizing disruption to users’ workflows and enforcing proper data security measures.
Managing SaaS Data Security
Organizations looking to manage their SaaS data security should first understand their current risk exposure and the number of applications currently used within the company. This will help IT professionals gain a better understanding of which files to prioritize that contain sensitive information that needs to quickly be remediated. Next, IT leaders should look for an automated and flexible bulk remediation solution to help them quickly manage complex file permissions as the company grows.
Companies should ensure they are only using SaaS applications that are up to their specific security standards. This is crucial to not only avoid data exposure, but also comply with business compliance regulations. IT admins should reassess each quarter their overall data posture and whether current SaaS applications are properly securing their private assets. Automation workflows within specific bulk remediation plans should be continuously updated to ensure companies are not missing security blind spots.
Each organization has different standards and policies that they will determine as best practices to keep their internal data safe. As the world becomes increasingly digital and the demand for SaaS applications exponentially grows, it is important for businesses to ensure they are not leaving their sensitive data exposed to third parties. Those that fail to remediate their SaaS security might be the next victim of a significant data breach.
