7 Data Loss Prevention (DLP) Best Practices Every Enterprise Should Implement

The data most likely to enable a business’s success is often its most sensitive. (Think customer information, intellectual property, and proprietary business strategies.) Securing that data from being breached or leaked is a top priority for organizations, especially in an era where cyber threats have snowballed in number and sophistication.

Data loss prevention (DLP) is a critical safeguard against these problems. It encompasses a comprehensive set of strategies, policies, and technologies, designed to protect sensitive information from unauthorized access, use, or transmission. Businesses can proactively defend against threats to their data by adopting best practices for DLP.

Effectively Implementing Data Loss Prevention

All organizations should follow some fundamental steps when implementing DLP. These actions help ensure that you cover all potential risks associated with data loss and proactively manage them.

Understanding what data is sensitive and where it resides is the first step toward implementing an effective DLP effort. This information enables organizations to apply the appropriate security controls to protect their data based on the relative sensitivity levels of the data. 

A sound data discovery process combines both automated and manual processes. Using automated data discovery tools makes finding your organization's vast amount of data much easier. These tools scan your network, databases, file systems, and endpoints to identify sensitive data. They also help maintain an up-to-date inventory and catalog of all discovered data–ensuring all sensitive data is accounted for and protected. Continuous monitoring should be set up to detect new sensitive data as it is created or when it enters your organization to ensure that your data inventory is always current.

Manual data discovery should be performed to identify sensitive data that automated tools may not detect. This typically involves audits with each department in your organization and employee interviews. The former helps to identify sensitive data that automated tools may not detect, while the latter helps you understand your employees’ data usage patterns and uncover any sensitive data that may be stored in unconventional locations, such as personal devices or shared drives.

Once you have your inventory of sensitive data, the next step is to define classification levels clearly. Common classifications include: 

• Public: Data that can be freely shared without any risk.
• Internal: Data meant for internal use within the organization.
• Confidential: Data that should only be accessed by specific individuals or departments.
• Restricted: Highly sensitive data that requires strict access controls and protection measures.

These classifications can then be applied to your data using automated classification tools. These tools use predefined rules and patterns to classify data based on its content. Metadata tagging should then be performed to embed classification information within the data. Consistent labeling ensures that data is handled appropriately based on its sensitivity.

Encryption is a process that converts plain text data into an unreadable format called ciphertext using an algorithm and an encryption key. Only those with the correct decryption key can convert the ciphertext back to its original form, keeping prying eyes away from sensitive information. Encryption can protect both data at rest—data stored on devices and storage media—and data in transit—data transmitted over networks.

When encrypting data at rest, full-disk encryption solutions protect data stored on endpoints such as laptops, desktops, and servers. They can also encrypt databases or individual files and folders.

Depending on the situation, a few security methods can be applied to encrypt data in transit. Protocols such as Transport Layer Security (TLD) or Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encrypt data transmitted over the Internet. On the other hand, virtual Private Networks (VPNs) encrypt data transmitted between remote users and the corporate network, while email encryption solutions like S/MIME or PGP protect sensitive information sent via email.

Organizations can significantly reduce the risk of data breaches and unauthorized disclosures by ensuring that only authorized individuals can access sensitive information. The three-step approach to controlling access ensures that the person trying to access the data has the right to access it, that they are who they say they are, and that all data access attempts are monitored and audited.

Implement role-based access control (RBAC) to ensure users have the appropriate level of data access. First, identify different roles within your organization, define the access each role requires, and assign permissions to those roles. A must-do practice is to provide permissions based on the principle of least privilege, i.e., each role should only have the minimum level of access necessary to perform its duties. 

Time-based access is another best practice that should be observed, as it only provides access to sensitive data when needed for a specific task or time period. A proper access request process should also be instituted so that the process for requesting, granting, and revoking access to sensitive data is formalized and clearly understood by all stakeholders.

Use multi-factor authentication (MFA) to verify that the person requesting data access is who they claim to be. MFA requires users to provide two or more verification factors to gain access to sensitive data, which adds an additional layer of security.

The third part of the control access triumvirate is monitoring and auditing access attempts. Maintaining detailed logs of access to sensitive data, combined with regular audits, helps detect unauthorized or suspicious access attempts. Ideally, implement real-time monitoring solutions to detect and receive alerts on unusual access patterns or behaviors as they happen so you can respond more promptly.

Keeping all systems, software, and security measures up-to-date ensures that vulnerabilities are promptly patched, security features are enhanced, and your organization remains resilient against evolving threats. A few key processes should be implemented and carried out regularly.

The first is to establish a patch management process. Use automated patch management tools to schedule and deploy updates across your network and systems, as automation makes the patching process much more efficient and ensures that patches are applied promptly. Prioritize critical updates that address security vulnerabilities and known exploits and test patches in a controlled environment before deploying them to production systems.

Regularly update your operating systems, browsers, and other software to ensure that all your hardware and software runs on up-to-date versions with security patches. Similarly, stay on top of your security controls and solutions updates. This helps to ensure that your antivirus and anti-malware applications have the latest virus definitions and threat signatures. Update firewall rulesets and IDS/IPS signatures on a disciplined cadence to defend against evolving cyber threats.

Monitor end-of-life and end-of-support dates, and ensure you plan for timely upgrades or migrations to supported versions to avoid security risks associated with unsupported products.

Automation ensures consistent actions, reduces the potential for mistakes, improves efficiency, and enhances the effectiveness of data protection measures. Several areas within DLP can be automated.

Data discovery and classification are perfect candidates for automation because the sheer magnitude of the effort would make manual efforts almost impossible. Automated tools help scan and classify sensitive data based on policies and patterns that you’ve predefined.

Automation also greatly benefits incident detection and response. Automated alerts and responses for anomalous activities, unauthorized access attempts, or data exfiltration events help you detect and respond to security incidents in real time. Automation ensures a prompt response to incidents, which helps to limit potential damage.

When it comes to policy enforcement, automated access controls, encryption settings, and data masking based on data classification and user roles help enforce data security policies across systems and endpoints. Automation ensures that the policies are applied consistently and always consistent with policy changes. 

Automating patch management and security updates ensures both timely mitigation of vulnerabilities and continuous compliance. Regular updates to your software and systems also guarantee that they operate optimally.  

Automated compliance audits, assessments, and reporting help your organization adhere to regulatory requirements and remain in compliance continuously.

Automation can also benefit your employee awareness and training efforts. Automated cybersecurity training modules, awareness campaigns, and simulated phishing exercises help educate employees on data protection best practices predictably.

Human error accounted for 68% of data breaches in 2023. This statistic hammers home the importance of educating your employees about data loss prevention. Awareness and training help create a strong defense against data breaches, insider threats, and human errors that could compromise sensitive information. Four main steps have to be taken to ensure proper training.

The first step is to develop a comprehensive training program tailored to your organization. Customize training materials to address your organization's specific risks and security needs, including industry-specific regulations and best practices. Use various formats, such as videos, interactive modules, workshops, and quizzes, to engage employees and reinforce learning.

There are several key topics in data loss prevention that all training should cover. 

• Phishing awareness is a critical component, as 59% of employees either aren’t sure or claim they’re not responsible for security. Use real-world scenarios and simulations to teach employees to recognize phishing emails, suspicious links, and social engineering tactics.
• Password security: 96% of the most common passwords can be cracked in less than one second. Pair that with the fact that 60% of people reuse their passwords, and it becomes clear that passwords are a very vulnerable data breach point for companies. To help combat password-related issues, educate employees on creating strong passwords, using password managers, using unique passwords for different accounts, and practicing good password hygiene (i.e., not sharing passwords).
• Data handling: Your average employee is not knowledgeable about secure data handling, and you must educate them on how to care for that data. Provide guidelines on securely handling sensitive information in digital and physical formats.
• Device security: Discuss best practices for securing devices in and out of the office, including antivirus software, device encryption, and avoiding public Wi-Fi risks. Make Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) a part of your organizational culture whenever necessary.
• Promote a culture of vigilance and reporting: Your employees can and should serve as an extension of your security team, and you can enable them with the right processes and systems. Establish clear channels for employees to report security incidents, suspicious activities, or potential data breaches confidentially and promptly. A scared employee is not likely to report anything they see, so it’s vital to assure them that they will be protected against retaliation for reporting security concerns.
• Update and reinforce training regularly: The threat landscape evolves rapidly, so it’s important to conduct regular cybersecurity awareness sessions and refresher courses to keep employees informed about new threats, security updates, and best practices. Review and update training materials annually to reflect technology, regulations, and security policy changes.
• Evaluate effectiveness and engagement: Training isn’t effective if your employees don’t take it, so be sure to solicit employee feedback to gauge training programs' effectiveness and identify improvement areas. To measure the impact of training on employee behavior and security posture, establish and track metrics such as phishing click rates and incident reporting trends.

To ensure that security policies remain relevant, adapt to emerging threats, and consistently align with organizational goals, continuously monitoring and refining your security policies is essential.

Establish a policy review schedule to be part of your organizational calendar and processes, whether annually or on an as-needed basis, to respond to regulatory changes, security incidents, or organizational developments. Initiate policy reviews following major system upgrades, mergers, acquisitions, or incidents that impact data security to ensure that your policies are up-to-date whenever a major event occurs.

The regulatory environment is fluid to stay on top of evolving threats and socio-political shifts, and it’s important to keep on top of regulatory changes. Regularly monitor changes in data protection laws, industry standards, and regulatory guidelines that impact DLP policies. Update your policies promptly to reflect new compliance requirements and ensure ongoing adherence to legal obligations.

It’s really important to keep a record of any changes you make to your policies so that there are reference points for you to understand the changes that have been made and to ensure that stakeholders are working with the most current version of your policy. Implement version control and documentation processes and maintain a centralized repository for storing policy documents, versions, and revision history, clearly documenting the rationale behind policy changes and updates. 

Testing and validating your policies is important to ensure they support your organization’s unique data security posture and translate to effective practices. Conduct tabletop exercises and simulations to test the effectiveness of policies in responding to hypothetical data breach scenarios. Gather and use insights from testing to refine incident response procedures and update your policies accordingly.

Data Loss Prevention with an Enterprise Browser

Employees today frequently work outside of the traditional office confines, utilizing unmanaged devices and networks. The proliferation of SaaS and web applications has revolutionized productivity but presents unique challenges for data protection. Legacy Data Loss Prevention (DLP) systems struggle to adapt to this evolving ecosystem.

Island’s Enterprise Browser integrates robust DLP capabilities directly into the browser environment. This approach ensures comprehensive data protection, whether tasks are performed within corporate networks or unmanaged systems. The browser's core DLP features include application and data boundaries to contain sensitive information within designated enterprise apps and intelligent data masking to conceal sensitive content until needed. Island’s advanced detectors flag and prevent data leakage across all potential exit points.

Beyond security, Island’s Enterprise Browser enhances user productivity with built-in tools like an AI Assistant, Password Manager, and Clipboard Manager. These features boost efficiency and mitigate risks associated with using third-party applications of uncertain origin.

Contact us to explore a future where all data interactions within SaaS and web applications are secured, no matter where your employees or contractors are. Discover how this vision of the workplace can unlock new possibilities for your organization and revolutionize your approach to data protection.

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