Your data is gone faster than you think.

Trade secrets, intellectual property, customer data - they can all be compromised by completely mundane, everyday actions. Data leaks often occur not just because of cyberattacks, but also often due to mistakes that individual users - your employees - make. Whether it’s forgetting a USB stick containing sensitive data on a plane, sharing a computer with colleagues, using an unauthorized app on a smartphone, or inadvertently passing on information that is not intended for outsiders, there are myriad scenarios that pose real risk to your organization. According to a study , by 2023, 43 percent of employees will be mobile, meaning they will be able to access corporate data from anywhere, at any moment. Data loss happens because users are unaware of the security risks or do not know the company’s policies. It’s supremely important, then, to educate your employees (and anyone else who may access your network or IT infrastructure) about data security and the responsible use of end devices.

In order for your organization to fully secure its information and files, educating the end user is not enough - you also need to set a strong technology foundation. Our recommendation? Use Office 365 Data Loss Prevention and set policies to safeguard sensitive information and prevent it from being disclosed by accident. Use Digital Rights Management with Windows Information Protection to protect corporate apps and business data - whether it’s located in company-owned devices or your employees’ personal devices - from accidental data loss. On mobile devices, such as those featuring iOS or Android, use EMS and Intune to separate corporate and personal data. With Azure Information Protection, you can control and secure emails, documents and sensitive data that your employees share with users located outside of your organization. You can establish clear policies regarding data storage, so your people know when to use cloud storage solutions and, more importantly, when not to. Microsoft Cloud App Security helps you verify if any unauthorized programs are being used and provides granular data controls and advanced threat protection to stop them from running - preventing your employees from, for example, moving your data to their private Dropbox storage.

Your users' end devices can be efficiently secured with Unified Endpoint Management, provided by Microsoft Intune, ensuring that the data does not fall into the wrong hands, even in the event of loss or theft. Intune makes security incredibly easy, as you can manage and secure all your devices, no matter the form factor nor the operating system (Windows 10, Android or iOS), from a central administration console. This allows you to replace any existing MDM systems that you may be using to secure iOS and Android devices, which helps you to cut down not only on costs, but on complexity too. The more security systems you use, the more complex the management of end devices becomes. This means that in the end, you not only end up saving money, but also vital staff resources, which may be even more important. According to a study, by 2022, the worldwide shortage of security experts will reach just under 1.87 million (Source: https://iamcybersafe.org/global-cybersecurity-workforce-shortage/).

Gartner has recognized Microsoft as a leader in Unified Endpoint Management tools. The full report can be found here: https://aka.ms/intuneMQ

If you are informed, you can avoid being subject to data loss as a result of successful cyber-attacks. You can stay ahead of the attackers with Microsoft Advanced Threat Analytics and get an assessment of your individual security status with Microsoft Secure Score.

Microsoft security solutions offer a wide range of capabilities to protect your organization’s multiple layers and vulnerabilities. These offerings include identity management and access protection with the Azure Security center, protection of endpoints with Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection , and, of course, Office 365 Advanced Threat Protection for securing files and applications. According to a study, 96 percent of businesses already use cloud services. Make sure you secure cloud services, such as Office 365. For example, Office 365 Cloud App Security gives you insights into suspicious activity in Office 365 applications, so you can identify and prevent potentially problematic situations.