Your company is likely to handle sensitive information that should be secured from access by unauthorised users. In the event of a breach in control, it could lead to a devastating loss of these valuable assets. The fundamental concept behind access control is that it acts as a careful gatekeeper, defining the rules by which people can handle sensitive materials. However, as organizations evolve and change, the original methods of handling data may not be the best or acceptable. This can result in sensitive data being released to unauthorised users, either within or outside the organization.
Inadequate control can lead to a loss of first-party data, which includes employee and customer information. A breach of this nature could expose your organization’s information to costly penalties from regulators, fines, or lawsuits. It could also affect the credibility of your clients and customers.
The management of access is an organizational and technical process. To ensure that you have control over access to confidential information, the right balance between policies, processes and technologies is necessary. These are essential to ensure that your company adheres to the industry’s regulations and standards that ensure business agility and keeps client and customer trust.
For instance, you must make sure that the physical security procedures are secure and effective for all employees, which means that they must keep documents on paper such as thumb drives, backups and other documents that contain personal information in locked cabinets and to report strangers who enter your facility to the security team. It’s also essential to establish the proper “need to be aware” for all access points, requiring that employees use passwords and two-factor authentication. examine their privilege lists regularly and promptly remove access rights when they are no longer needed, and then encrypt the data to safeguard it from tampering or reading.