Dismissed man carrying box with stuff in office showing data breach and use of DLP with data labeling

Corporate Divorce: How Companies Can Prevent Multimillion-Dollar Data Breaches

When times are tough, the first way that most businesses try to cut costs is with layoffs. Top-paid positions are often the first on the chopping block, but these “corporate divorces” can be costly if companies let go of the wrong employee.

The more access an employee has to sensitive data, the higher the likelihood they can leak this information if they feel they’ve been wronged. This is where corporate divorce gets messy. Data breaches from all sources rose to the highest recorded cost we’ve seen in almost 20 years: $4.24 million.

On top of this, data breaches from insiders are increasing dramatically. A 2021 report from Verizon found that insiders are responsible for nearly a quarter of information breach incidents. This shows that even if your “marriage contract” was drafted in all the right ways, your company is still at risk.

Now, corporations are left with a problem. Do they try to save tens of thousands by laying off employees and risk a multimillion-dollar security breach?

Fortunately, there are solutions.

Optimize your cybersecurity budget to stay protected

Over the past year, 82 percent of organizations increased their cybersecurity budgets. In most cases, these funds made up about 15 percent of their total IT expenditures.

What are these companies paying for?

Most have recognized the merits of integrating a more secure DLP system. Until recently, DLP systems were viewed only as tools for detecting leaks and preventing confidential information from theft.

However, as these systems have become more sophisticated, they’re more widely recognized as a solution capable of controlling all corporate information flows. There are plenty of advantages here, and integrating this solution can help corporations lock down their information.

The shortcomings of conventional DLP systems

Traditional DLP systems have their merits, and they are far better than simply counting on basic cybersecurity protocols to be enough.

Businesses need to realize that there are severe flaws in these systems, however.

1. Long implementation times

This is a serious pain point for a lot of companies. Despite their advantages, the setup, implementation, and subsequent maintenance of DLP systems is often tedious. It’s inconvenient, time-consuming and makes workdays difficult for employees during the initial phases.

2. Lack of screen capture protection

Screen capture is something that many corporations don’t give enough thought to. It’s all too easy for employees to take screenshots of sensitive information with no repercussions. Most DLP systems have no effective methods to protect against this kind of sabotage.

3. High costs

The unfortunate reality is that deploying an effective DLP system often costs exorbitant amounts of money. While protection is essential for success, the cost of these systems can be even higher than the cost of a data breach.

New tech offers added security

Fortunately, new solutions are emerging that offer better and more affordable protection. For example, there are labeling solutions that incorporate technology that allows users to find the source of a leak, even if screenshots or photos of documents are taken.

This kinds of labeling systems offer a better way for corporations to minimize confidential data leaks and effectively track leak sources if they happen.

While there’s no way to completely eliminate the risk of a “jilted” employee making the divorce proceedings messy, taking additional steps can be effective for prevention. New data security solutions can deter employees from retaliation and reduce the chances of confidential data being leaked at all.

 

CEO & Founder at G-71