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This article explores the risks organisations may encounter when integrating existing software with third-party applications. It explores potential vulnerabilities in third-party systems, how to identify them and strategies to mitigate risk. The article also discusses best practices for avoiding data leaks.
Data leakage occurs when sensitive information is accidentally exposed. The exposed data can reach the hands of cybercriminals, who may use it to carry out illegal activities, such as identity theft, extortion or fraud.
Data leakage may occur in various ways. For example, using outdated systems, poorly configured settings or losing a device may result in data leakage. Third-party integrations may also cause data leakage, specifically when they have easily exploited security vulnerabilities.
As more businesses rely on third-party software and integrations, it's critical to understand their supply chain risks. While integrations can streamline organisational processes and boost software capabilities, an improperly vetted third-party integration can lead to unintended data security consequences.
When using third-party integrations, leakage may occur in the data supply chain in several ways. Here are a few to be aware of.
An API allows organisations to connect software applications and facilitates communication and data exchange between systems. However, certain API vulnerabilities may lead to data leakage.
One such vulnerability is weak authentication. An authentication protocol confirms that a person or device trying to access software has the authority to do so. Bad actors may circumvent the protocol and access data if the authentication system is weak. Third parties may strengthen their APIs by implementing multi-factor authentication or requiring frequent password updates.
Another potential vulnerability is providing the user with data that exceeds the bounds of their request. For instance, a developer may fail to include code that limits requested information to certain fields, allowing a user to obtain far more detail than necessary.
Poorly configured APIs may have lax security controls. For example, a business may install the API using its default configuration rather than tailoring it to align with its security needs.
Another way businesses can fall prey to data leakage is by sharing data using unsecured channels. These channels may include public Wi-Fi networks, unencrypted email or networks that don't require a password to access.
A security administrator generally sets role permissions and rights that allow users to access specific data. However, role-based access control may fail due to misconfiguration or other errors.
Organisations can mitigate their access control risk by adopting a zero-trust policy. In zero-trust security models, access is granted on a one-time basis and must be continuously verified whenever the user requires data.
Data encryption involves translating data into undecipherable bits and bytes before transferring it. If a hacker were somehow to gain access to encrypted data during a data leak, they wouldn't be able to read it or do anything with it. If a third-party integration doesn't include encryption features, it increases the risk that leaked data may be used for nefarious purposes.
A data leak can have severe repercussions for an organisation. Aside from losing highly sensitive business and customer information, it can result in monetary fines, penalties and other harm.
The financial damages of a data leak can be massive. An organisation may incur fines and penalties for neglecting to properly secure data. Hackers may request a ransom payment in exchange for the leaked data. Companies may also be susceptible to the financial consequences of business disruption during the leak. It's not unusual for impacted customers or vendors to file lawsuits if their sensitive information was part of a data leak.
Following a data leak, customers and vendors are less likely to trust a company. They may fear that the organisation will fail to protect their sensitive information and thus choose to do business with other companies instead.
Many countries and regions have laws governing data privacy and security. The EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is perhaps the most extensive and imposes significant financial penalties on organisations that improperly process or store data of EU citizens and residents. The UK has a similar law, The Data Protection Act 2018, which follows the same standards as the GDPR.
In the U.S., federal laws concerning data breaches apply to organisations that store financial or health-related data. All 50 states impose data breach reporting laws that require companies to notify individuals when their personal information is exposed during a leak.
If a data breach or leak occurs due to an organisation's unsatisfactory security protocols, it may be liable for fines and penalties per applicable regulations.
Customer and vendor data aren't the only things that may be lost during a breach. Information about an organisation's intellectual property (IP) or processes that give it a significant competitive advantage may also be exposed in a leak, diminishing its ability to compete effectively in its industry.
The potential for data leaks will always be a concern. However, businesses can reduce the risks of a breach or leak by introducing specific strategies.
Unless your organisation has the resources and know-how to develop in-house software that fulfils all your business needs, you may need to rely on third-party vendors and systems. Implementing a third-party risk management (TPRM) strategy can help you identify and mitigate risks with vendors.
An effective TPRM strategy includes several phases for evaluating and selecting new vendors. It starts with identifying potential providers, assessing their software and using specific standards, such as ISO 27001, to determine compliance. You may select vendors that offer software that aligns with your needs and complies with your desired standards while avoiding more risky alternatives.
A robust data governance framework can reduce the chances of a data leak. The data governance framework may include:
As more business activities transition online, the risk of a data breach or leak increases. Making security audits a regular part of your business practices can uncover hidden vulnerabilities before sensitive data falls into the wrong hands.
The scope of a security audit will depend on the complexity of your information systems. However, it should include a review of your current security policies, network security and access controls. Some things to consider during an audit include which roles have access to sensitive data and the strength of your access verification controls. You may also review existing third-party software relationships to determine whether they still align with the organisation's security standards.
Informing employees of data leak risks and training them to spot potential threats can go a long way toward protecting your organisation. Consider providing IT security training when a worker first joins your organisation. You may also mandate refresher training every quarter or annually. Training may address topics like updating passwords regularly, safely downloading files and learning how to confirm the authenticity of emails.
If a data leak occurs, despite your best efforts at mitigating risks, technical solutions may limit lost data. Here are a few options to consider.
Integrating DLP tools can help identify when data may be at risk of leakage or inappropriate transfer.
Three basic types of DLP tools exist: network, endpoint and cloud. Network DLP tools monitor email and file transfers to discover critical data sent in violation of a company's information security policies. Endpoint tools guard servers and technology hardware from potential leaks and misuse. Cloud DLP tools encrypt sensitive data and monitor users who access it.
DLP tools can restrict activity upon detecting data misuse, improper transfer or a data leak. A quick response can prevent a data leak from becoming a more significant issue.
Encrypting and tokenising data can prevent hackers from using any data they obtain through a data leak. Encryption involves encoding data into indecipherable content that can only be read when a user has a decryption key. Tokenisation interchanges specific data, such as credit card numbers or identification numbers, into random characters that can only be uncovered by a token vault.
Implementing robust controls over who can access secure data may reduce the risk of leaks. Role-based controls, where users receive access based on job requirements, or a zero-trust policy, which requires continuous verification of users, may mitigate risks. A multi-factor authentication system that requires secondary verification may also limit unauthorised access to data.
Some organisations may benefit from network segmentation, which partitions networks into separate parts. In network segmentation, an organisation may control user traffic by source, destination or other means. For instance, a company with global offices may restrict local users in one country from accessing the headquarter's data servers.
By following a few best practices when integrating third-party software with existing systems, companies can mitigate the risk of data leaks.
Before searching for a new software partner, it's helpful to outline business needs and priorities. Understanding what third-party software should accomplish and what security standards the company wishes to uphold may help the organisation pinpoint appropriate partners. It's also helpful to create a scorecard evaluation of potential vendors. The scorecard may consider factors like security standards, software capabilities, price and customer service.
It's also smart to review the vendor's agreement, particularly the responsibilities they retain to protect clients from data breaches and leaks. A reputable vendor will implement security practices and maintenance to ensure the safety of integrations with your organisation's applications.
After integrating new third-party applications, it's critical to monitor them on an ongoing basis for security vulnerabilities. Include them in your regular security audits and proactively check for weaknesses in API or data transfer methods. You may also undergo periodic reviews of role-based access to verify that employees can only retrieve data used in their jobs.
If a data leak should ever occur, you don't want your employees wringing their hands, wondering what to do. Swift action is key, and an incident response plan can prevent further data loss. Consider empowering your IT or cybersecurity team to develop a plan for a data breach that outlines specific actions to take, such as immediately shutting down systems or limiting users' access to applications. You may also need to report the data breach to law enforcement.
Limiting the sensitive data you collect from customers and vendors can decrease the organisation's risk. For instance, if you only need a client's name and address to ship a product, there's little reason to ask for sensitive details like their tax identification number or birthday. By collecting only data related to your specific purpose, you don't unwittingly house a vast amount of information a hacker could leverage. You may apply the same principles to AI governance if you use AI to collect customer information.
Few organisations can avoid third-party integrations. Such integrations can streamline business processes, improve efficiency and enhance a company's competitive advantage. By knowing the risks of third-party integrations and implementing strategies to prevent data leaks, you can reap all the benefits while limiting the prospect of data exposure.
Start by determining your business needs and implementing vendor risk management practices. Establishing a robust controls framework can help prevent unauthorised users from accessing data. You may also integrate DLP tools and encryption to protect sensitive information in the event of a leak.
Zendata offers several products to protect sensitive data. Our Privacy Mapper can scan for Personally Identifiable Information (PII) across your IT infrastructure, and our Code Scanner can pinpoint potential PII risks in software code. We can help your company retain a secure operating environment, reducing the risk of a data breach.
This article explores the risks organisations may encounter when integrating existing software with third-party applications. It explores potential vulnerabilities in third-party systems, how to identify them and strategies to mitigate risk. The article also discusses best practices for avoiding data leaks.
Data leakage occurs when sensitive information is accidentally exposed. The exposed data can reach the hands of cybercriminals, who may use it to carry out illegal activities, such as identity theft, extortion or fraud.
Data leakage may occur in various ways. For example, using outdated systems, poorly configured settings or losing a device may result in data leakage. Third-party integrations may also cause data leakage, specifically when they have easily exploited security vulnerabilities.
As more businesses rely on third-party software and integrations, it's critical to understand their supply chain risks. While integrations can streamline organisational processes and boost software capabilities, an improperly vetted third-party integration can lead to unintended data security consequences.
When using third-party integrations, leakage may occur in the data supply chain in several ways. Here are a few to be aware of.
An API allows organisations to connect software applications and facilitates communication and data exchange between systems. However, certain API vulnerabilities may lead to data leakage.
One such vulnerability is weak authentication. An authentication protocol confirms that a person or device trying to access software has the authority to do so. Bad actors may circumvent the protocol and access data if the authentication system is weak. Third parties may strengthen their APIs by implementing multi-factor authentication or requiring frequent password updates.
Another potential vulnerability is providing the user with data that exceeds the bounds of their request. For instance, a developer may fail to include code that limits requested information to certain fields, allowing a user to obtain far more detail than necessary.
Poorly configured APIs may have lax security controls. For example, a business may install the API using its default configuration rather than tailoring it to align with its security needs.
Another way businesses can fall prey to data leakage is by sharing data using unsecured channels. These channels may include public Wi-Fi networks, unencrypted email or networks that don't require a password to access.
A security administrator generally sets role permissions and rights that allow users to access specific data. However, role-based access control may fail due to misconfiguration or other errors.
Organisations can mitigate their access control risk by adopting a zero-trust policy. In zero-trust security models, access is granted on a one-time basis and must be continuously verified whenever the user requires data.
Data encryption involves translating data into undecipherable bits and bytes before transferring it. If a hacker were somehow to gain access to encrypted data during a data leak, they wouldn't be able to read it or do anything with it. If a third-party integration doesn't include encryption features, it increases the risk that leaked data may be used for nefarious purposes.
A data leak can have severe repercussions for an organisation. Aside from losing highly sensitive business and customer information, it can result in monetary fines, penalties and other harm.
The financial damages of a data leak can be massive. An organisation may incur fines and penalties for neglecting to properly secure data. Hackers may request a ransom payment in exchange for the leaked data. Companies may also be susceptible to the financial consequences of business disruption during the leak. It's not unusual for impacted customers or vendors to file lawsuits if their sensitive information was part of a data leak.
Following a data leak, customers and vendors are less likely to trust a company. They may fear that the organisation will fail to protect their sensitive information and thus choose to do business with other companies instead.
Many countries and regions have laws governing data privacy and security. The EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is perhaps the most extensive and imposes significant financial penalties on organisations that improperly process or store data of EU citizens and residents. The UK has a similar law, The Data Protection Act 2018, which follows the same standards as the GDPR.
In the U.S., federal laws concerning data breaches apply to organisations that store financial or health-related data. All 50 states impose data breach reporting laws that require companies to notify individuals when their personal information is exposed during a leak.
If a data breach or leak occurs due to an organisation's unsatisfactory security protocols, it may be liable for fines and penalties per applicable regulations.
Customer and vendor data aren't the only things that may be lost during a breach. Information about an organisation's intellectual property (IP) or processes that give it a significant competitive advantage may also be exposed in a leak, diminishing its ability to compete effectively in its industry.
The potential for data leaks will always be a concern. However, businesses can reduce the risks of a breach or leak by introducing specific strategies.
Unless your organisation has the resources and know-how to develop in-house software that fulfils all your business needs, you may need to rely on third-party vendors and systems. Implementing a third-party risk management (TPRM) strategy can help you identify and mitigate risks with vendors.
An effective TPRM strategy includes several phases for evaluating and selecting new vendors. It starts with identifying potential providers, assessing their software and using specific standards, such as ISO 27001, to determine compliance. You may select vendors that offer software that aligns with your needs and complies with your desired standards while avoiding more risky alternatives.
A robust data governance framework can reduce the chances of a data leak. The data governance framework may include:
As more business activities transition online, the risk of a data breach or leak increases. Making security audits a regular part of your business practices can uncover hidden vulnerabilities before sensitive data falls into the wrong hands.
The scope of a security audit will depend on the complexity of your information systems. However, it should include a review of your current security policies, network security and access controls. Some things to consider during an audit include which roles have access to sensitive data and the strength of your access verification controls. You may also review existing third-party software relationships to determine whether they still align with the organisation's security standards.
Informing employees of data leak risks and training them to spot potential threats can go a long way toward protecting your organisation. Consider providing IT security training when a worker first joins your organisation. You may also mandate refresher training every quarter or annually. Training may address topics like updating passwords regularly, safely downloading files and learning how to confirm the authenticity of emails.
If a data leak occurs, despite your best efforts at mitigating risks, technical solutions may limit lost data. Here are a few options to consider.
Integrating DLP tools can help identify when data may be at risk of leakage or inappropriate transfer.
Three basic types of DLP tools exist: network, endpoint and cloud. Network DLP tools monitor email and file transfers to discover critical data sent in violation of a company's information security policies. Endpoint tools guard servers and technology hardware from potential leaks and misuse. Cloud DLP tools encrypt sensitive data and monitor users who access it.
DLP tools can restrict activity upon detecting data misuse, improper transfer or a data leak. A quick response can prevent a data leak from becoming a more significant issue.
Encrypting and tokenising data can prevent hackers from using any data they obtain through a data leak. Encryption involves encoding data into indecipherable content that can only be read when a user has a decryption key. Tokenisation interchanges specific data, such as credit card numbers or identification numbers, into random characters that can only be uncovered by a token vault.
Implementing robust controls over who can access secure data may reduce the risk of leaks. Role-based controls, where users receive access based on job requirements, or a zero-trust policy, which requires continuous verification of users, may mitigate risks. A multi-factor authentication system that requires secondary verification may also limit unauthorised access to data.
Some organisations may benefit from network segmentation, which partitions networks into separate parts. In network segmentation, an organisation may control user traffic by source, destination or other means. For instance, a company with global offices may restrict local users in one country from accessing the headquarter's data servers.
By following a few best practices when integrating third-party software with existing systems, companies can mitigate the risk of data leaks.
Before searching for a new software partner, it's helpful to outline business needs and priorities. Understanding what third-party software should accomplish and what security standards the company wishes to uphold may help the organisation pinpoint appropriate partners. It's also helpful to create a scorecard evaluation of potential vendors. The scorecard may consider factors like security standards, software capabilities, price and customer service.
It's also smart to review the vendor's agreement, particularly the responsibilities they retain to protect clients from data breaches and leaks. A reputable vendor will implement security practices and maintenance to ensure the safety of integrations with your organisation's applications.
After integrating new third-party applications, it's critical to monitor them on an ongoing basis for security vulnerabilities. Include them in your regular security audits and proactively check for weaknesses in API or data transfer methods. You may also undergo periodic reviews of role-based access to verify that employees can only retrieve data used in their jobs.
If a data leak should ever occur, you don't want your employees wringing their hands, wondering what to do. Swift action is key, and an incident response plan can prevent further data loss. Consider empowering your IT or cybersecurity team to develop a plan for a data breach that outlines specific actions to take, such as immediately shutting down systems or limiting users' access to applications. You may also need to report the data breach to law enforcement.
Limiting the sensitive data you collect from customers and vendors can decrease the organisation's risk. For instance, if you only need a client's name and address to ship a product, there's little reason to ask for sensitive details like their tax identification number or birthday. By collecting only data related to your specific purpose, you don't unwittingly house a vast amount of information a hacker could leverage. You may apply the same principles to AI governance if you use AI to collect customer information.
Few organisations can avoid third-party integrations. Such integrations can streamline business processes, improve efficiency and enhance a company's competitive advantage. By knowing the risks of third-party integrations and implementing strategies to prevent data leaks, you can reap all the benefits while limiting the prospect of data exposure.
Start by determining your business needs and implementing vendor risk management practices. Establishing a robust controls framework can help prevent unauthorised users from accessing data. You may also integrate DLP tools and encryption to protect sensitive information in the event of a leak.
Zendata offers several products to protect sensitive data. Our Privacy Mapper can scan for Personally Identifiable Information (PII) across your IT infrastructure, and our Code Scanner can pinpoint potential PII risks in software code. We can help your company retain a secure operating environment, reducing the risk of a data breach.
