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Real-time DLP: Safeguarding Your Data in the Cloud and Beyond 

DLP Week 42

In an increasingly digital world, data has become one of the most valuable assets for organizations of all sizes. However, with the convenience of the cloud and the need for collaboration among external users, the risk of data breaches and leaks has grown exponentially. This is where Real-time Data Loss Prevention (DLP) comes into play, offering a powerful solution to safeguard your data, both in the cloud and beyond. 

Preventing Data Leakage in Real Time 

Real-time DLP stands as a robust shield against the unauthorized transmission of sensitive data to the cloud or external users. No longer do you need to fear your confidential information falling into the wrong hands. With this technology, you gain real-time control over what users can share, inspecting messages, files, and audio before they even leave your organization’s network. 

Data Protection, Anytime, Anywhere 

One of the key features of Real-time DLP is its ability to monitor data in motion as well as near real-time data at rest. This means that it doesn’t matter if your data is on the move or at rest in storage; it’s under constant surveillance. Your organization’s delicate information remains secure, whether it’s in transit or resting safely on your premises. 

Seamlessly Integrating DLP 

What’s more, Real-time DLP offers flexibility in terms of DLP inspection. You can choose to utilize the built-in engine for inspection or seamlessly integrate it with existing DLP infrastructures from leading vendors. This adaptability ensures that you can tailor your data protection strategy to fit your specific needs. 

Customizable File Type Control 

Real-time DLP puts the power in your hands with customizable file type control. Administrators have the ability to define which file types are allowed and which ones are blocked in real time. For instance, you can specify that only .docx and .pdf files are permitted for transmission while blocking potentially dangerous or non-compliant files such as .exe, .zip, or .rar formats. This granular control over file types adds an extra layer of security to your data, preventing potential threats from infiltrating your organization. 

Benefits of Real-time DLP 

The advantages of implementing Real-time DLP are manifold: 

  • Confidential Data Protection: Real-time DLP helps you detect and prevent the leakage of confidential data, ensuring your proprietary information remains safe from prying eyes. 
  • External User Safeguard: Sensitive data is blocked from reaching external users, reducing the risk of data breaches caused by accidental or intentional sharing. 
  • Proactive Threat Defense: By blocking file types in real time, your business is shielded from potential threats that could compromise your security. 

Conclusion 

In an age where data breaches and leaks are on the rise, safeguarding your organization’s sensitive information is of paramount importance. Real-time DLP emerges as a formidable ally in this ongoing battle, providing the means to prevent data loss in the cloud and beyond. Whether you’re concerned about data in motion, data at rest, or the types of files your users can transmit, Real-time DLP gives you the control and protection you need to keep your data secure in today’s digital landscape. 

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Balancing Collaboration and Compliance: Ethical Wall/ Information Barrier Solutions 

Ethical Wall week 41

In the modern business landscape, digital collaboration is essential. Online collaboration platforms such as MS Teams, Zoom and Webex serve as a hub for communication, but managing sensitive information and staying compliant is equally critical. That’s where Ethical Wall (Information Barriers) come into play, by offering a ready-to-use solution with a focus on precision. Ethical Wall offers features such as: 

Blocking Communication and Controlling Activities 

Take control to the next level by blocking unauthorized communication between users and managing their activities. In the digital world, not all information should be accessible to everyone. This tool safeguards sensitive data by preventing unsanctioned communication. 

Customized Communication Policies 

This tool empowers organizations to craft communication policies based on various criteria: groups, individual users, domains, conversation types, and scope. You can ensure communication aligns with your organization’s rules, whether restricting external conversations or limiting certain internal groups to specific channels. 

Policies for External and Internal Users 

Ethical Wall isn’t limited to internal users; it extends its protective reach to external users and groups. This feature is invaluable for businesses collaborating with external partners, vendors, or clients, ensuring your organization’s policies transcend internal networks for consistent security and compliance. 

Let’s dive into the practical benefits that Ethical Wall/ Information Barriers brings to organizations striving to harmonize collaboration and compliance: 

1. Precise Control Over Communication 

Granularity is a standout feature of Ethical Wall, allowing you to fine-tune communication policies to your specific needs. Whether you need to restrict communication for select users or limit external communication to specific domains, this tool empowers you with precise rule-setting. 

2. Automated Rule Enforcement 

Ethical Wall/ Information Barriers guarantees consistent policy enforcement. It operates on a rule-based system, ensuring policies are automatically applied, reducing the risk of human error, and maintaining compliance consistently. 

3. Comprehensive Auditing and Reporting 

Maintaining compliance goes beyond enforcement; you must also demonstrate it. A great Ethical Wall includes robust auditing and reporting features, allowing you to track and document communication activities. This not only aids regulatory compliance but also offers valuable insights into your organization’s communication patterns. 

In summary, Ethical Wall (Information Barriers) strikes the perfect balance between collaboration and compliance. With its precision control, rule-based enforcement, and robust auditing capabilities, it’s an indispensable tool for securing sensitive information and ensuring adherence to industry regulations.  

Enjoy seamless collaboration without compromising on security or compliance. 

Try AGAT’s Ethical Wall (Infomation Barriers) solution. 

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Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Releases Information Barriers v2 with New Features for Enhanced Architecture

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In a recent article, we introduced the definitive guide to information barriers, a comprehensive guide designed to help you manage your organization’s communication policies more effectively. A few days ago Microsoft released Information Barriers v2. Here’s a look at the features included in this new version and other options for businesses looking to improve their compliance skills.

But before that, let’s go through a quick overview of Microsoft Information Barriers’ purpose and functions, and what are the missing capabilities in v1 that are targeted by IB v2. 

What is Microsoft Information Barriers

Microsoft Information Barriers is a platform designed to help companies meet compliance requirements by allowing for the implementation of policy-driven controls for internal communications. The goal of the policies allowed by the platform is to create separations (or “barriers”) between different groups or individuals within an organization, in order to prevent potentially risky interactions and communications from happening. 

Microsoft Information Barriers v2 is aimed at expanding the set of tools offered by the platform, allowing for more scalability and flexibility. However, there are still a few downsides to the platform that we will discuss further on. By the end of this article, we will talk about how companies can access a more comprehensive set of features to accomplish their compliance goals.

New Features in Information Barriers v2

Features added in this new version of Information Barriers mostly focus on enhancing the platform’s architectural capabilities. 

Let’s take a closer look at them:

Large-scale segment support

Segments are crucial tools of IB. By leveraging user attributes, they allow you to divide your organization into more manageable units. This helps ensure data security, making data accessible only to those who need it.

The previous version of IB only allowed for 250 segments within each organization. In v2, this number has significantly increased: you can create up to 5,000 segments. While a simple structure of segments based on departments may suffice for smaller organizations, this new feature allows for bigger scalability, which makes it crucial for those companies that are in the process of growing.

Multi-segment support

Until now, IB only allowed each user to be part of one segment. Now, in the multi-segment mode in Information Barriers v2, they can be assigned up to 10 segments.

This represents an important upgrade, especially when organizations become more complex and they need to support different operational scenarios. With this new feature, you can get more diverse communication rules between individuals and groups. 

Flexible user discoverability

With IB v2 administrators can enable or disable user discoverability restrictions. When the user discoverability restriction is turned off, users can discover each other in the people picker, no matter what their IB policies are. Administrators can disable user discoverability restrictions by using Security & Compliance PowerShell.   

These are the 3 new features of Microsoft Information Barriers v1. 

Mainly, the goal of this new version is to tackle some of the architectural downsides of Microsoft Information Barriers. Larger and more sophisticated segment support, as well as the flexibilization of user discoverability restrictions, are all features that are aimed at giving users more flexibility when managing their communications. 

Microsoft Information Barriers v2: Some Limitations To Take Into Account

In an ever-shifting, highly-competitive business landscape the increased scalability and flexibility provided by these new features will be welcomed by many companies. Unfortunately, Microsoft Information Barriers v2 still has a few downsides that need to be taken into account, especially for companies that need to deal with complicated compliance requirements and manage sensitive data.

Despite having focused on expanding segment-related capabilities, the policies that can be set up still only apply to internal users. In an era in which external collaborations are so crucial for most companies, this is not a minor issue. In IB v2, external team members are still allowed to add members of opposing segments to a meeting.  

Also, managing Microsoft Information Barriers requires ongoing attention and monitoring, which tends to add administrative burdens to IT departments. Analyzing and solving problems is a time-consuming, complicated task. Most of the process is done by Microsoft, which prevents organizations from taking control of it.

AGAT Information Barriers Solution: Granular Control to Manage Sensitive Data 

For many organizations, Microsoft Information Barriers may not be enough to meet their compliance goals and needs. A lot of companies, especially those in highly-regulated industries, need to be able to granularly block communications. Bearing this in mind, AGAT Information Barriers solution was designed to significantly improve companies’ capacity to manage sensitive data. 

AGAT Information Barriers solution distinguishes itself for its real-time proactive approach. This makes a lot of sense in a world in which digital working environments are extremely dynamic. Messages and information are constantly flowing in every direction, so inspecting communications in near-real time is key to preventing unwanted incidents from taking place. 

AGAT Information Barriers features are aimed at giving companies better tools for controlling and managing data in Microsoft Teams. 

Granular control 

Based on the context of each communication, dynamically block or mask all types of content: messages, files, images, calls, or shared screens. 

Compliance accuracy

Address specific and complex compliance issues without compromising performance. 

Security

Significantly improve security and data governance capacities.

Anticipate threats

Identify potential threats in near-real time and address them before they can cause damage. 

All in all, with its real-time time monitoring capabilities and its comprehensive features, AGAT Information Barriers solution allows you to limit the risk of data breaches and insider threats much more effectively.  

Check out this video to see the solution in action:

Information Barriers for MS Teams (Ethical Wall) – Granular Block File Sharing, Messages, & more

Conclusion

The launching of Microsoft Information Barriers v2 is good news for companies that are looking for more scalability and flexibility in their communication management. Despite its virtues, this new version of Microsoft’s Information Barriers solution still presents a few downsides in terms of meeting more sophisticated compliance requirements and managing sensitive data.

If you want to ensure effective management of your communication policies, AGAT Software is your best ally. In our digital era, regulations and compliance are getting more complex by the day.

Do not hesitate to give your compliance capabilities a boost. Contact us and our team will show you a short demo of AGAT Information Barriers solution.