This article was written exclusively for the ISACA GWDC by Michael M. Lui. For more information, email michael.lui@azeusconvene.com
Cybersecurity is becoming a topic of grave importance recently across multiple industries as it comprises everything regarding the protection of our personal information, confidential company data, intellectual property, and the like from theft and adversaries. Companies such as Equifax, eBay, and Yahoo had already been victims of cyber breaches costing them millions of dollars for victim compensation due to millions of accounts breached with the chances of identity theft as well. One of the main reasons behind this would be the current methods used for collating and distributing data With the evolution of data sharing, documents and other important files can now be stored online in various repositories. Though it has aided in easing tedious processes from the organization, this does not mean that they are not vulnerable to breaches when it comes to security. With these imminent threats at the foot of every organization’s doorstep, here are reasons why businesses need to invest in a type of software that secures data, especially those at the boardroom level.
Secured Distribution of Information
Previously, board documents and confidential data needed to be sent through email or through courier, which both have a high risk of you losing control of your documents. This is due to the fact that there is uncertainty whether or not the board documents reached their respective recipients. Moreover, there are also some instances where these documents are misdirected to other people’s inboxes or even lost. However, with software like a board portal that is there for managing board documents, there is complete control over the circulation of documents. As files are placed in a secure and encrypted environment, only users that are granted access or are invited are able to view the document.
Secured End-to-End Collaboration
The security of an organization’s board documents shouldn’t just end after its distribution. These documents must remain secure even after it’s been used for a meeting or after the files have been reviewed by their recipients. Given this, the software is needed not merely as a secure distribution channel for an organization’s files but also serves as a safe environment for communication and collaboration for board members before, during, and after the board meeting.
Traceability and Control Across All Stages
With a board portal or any other related software, its users are guaranteed security at different levels through different features. One of which is an audit trail that gives users or administrators an overview of recent activities done such as sign-in, document changes, permission changes, etc. With this, there is traceability in terms of the actions done at a certain time regarding a specific activity. Moreover, this becomes highly important when users are dealing with sensitive or confidential information which doesn’t want to be used inappropriately.
Another feature of boardroom software would be its two-factor authentication which adds an additional layer of identification of the user before they are granted access to the portal. Permissions and watermarks are other features that become useful in identifying who has access to documents and files, and when these have been downloaded or printed by whom.
Remote Wipe and Data Encryption
Mobile devices such as laptops, phones, and tablets containing important documents and files are easily misplaced or are prone to theft all the time. In these circumstances, people become frightened and frustrated about
the lost items. However, with secure software, the fear of losing one’s device can be alleviated with its remote wipe feature. Though one’s personal files and documents are erased from their device, at least the users are able to keep classified and business-critical information out of other people’s grasp. Additionally, given that all files have data encryption and are kept in a secured platform, this can also give the user an assurance that their file was not retrieved without their permission.
Data and Cybersecurity
All in all, when it comes to cybersecurity, investing in such software greatly helps in reducing possible threats to one’s important files and documents. This is because essential elements such as security and privacy can be found within such a solution. Nowadays, people should no longer ask why it’s important to implement cybersecurity, but instead, ensure that they are implementing and constantly updating their cybersecurity practices. This is to ensure that the organization’s regulations are compliant and are able to protect the business from impeding cyberattacks as it has the potential to make anyone its next victim.