How to Avoid the Next Data Breach
2007 may be remembered as the year of data breaches (unless 2008 surpasses it, which we hope will not be the case). Big names from Disney to Western Union, Fidelity National Information Services and of course TJX were all in the headlines for the wrong reasons.
Security, it is often said, is only as strong as its weakest link: leave an opening and someone will find it. There is some truth to this, but if this were the whole truth then security would be an all-or-none proposition – luckily, it is not. Most breaches, especially large-scale ones, are the result of multiple failure points. A breach on the scale of TJX, which continued undetected for 17 months, did not occur because someone had forgotten to follow one rule or close one back door.
Therefore, the good news is that taking even some of the recommended measures can greatly reduce the risk of data breaches, or at least mitigate their impact if they do happen by enabling early detection and quick remediation.
