Information Security: Data generates information and insights, which open the possibility of making strategic decisions with speed, precision, and agility: this is an undeniable premise within the current corporate scenario.
However, stricter legislation on data, its storage, use, and custody make this reality a tacit and persistent danger for modern organizations. As an example of this, we have the GDPR and the LGPD.
Therefore, the players in the current corporate scenario, in addition to the greater competitiveness they have to manage inherent to their specific business activities, need to focus on information security constantly. For this, it is highly recommended to create policies and practices focused on IS pillars, as it is a way to ensure that these processes are reliable and are up to the current challenges of this sector.
The Five Pillars
Five pillars support information security, as they guarantee the usability and reliability of the data that travels on a network. Attention to these pillars is a strong indication that the information collected and stored in the Company is safe, minimizing the risk of loss and, consequently, sanctions. These pillars are:
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Availability
The information must be easily accessible to authorized persons. In a superficial analysis, this aspect may seem obvious. Still, it is not uncommon to find cases in which the lack of organization of systems and platforms generates data duplicity at the same time that – paradoxically – it creates situations of inaccessibility of information, compromising the continuity of processes from the Company. Monitoring tools and teams can prevent this information from being lost or accessed by unauthorized persons.
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Integrity
It is not enough to be available: the information needs to be reliable. The integrity of data and information is a determining factor in ensuring the quality of decision-making and the analyzes made from them. Similarly, fragmented, outdated, or incorrect information jeopardizes activities, operations, and management at any level or segment of the organization, potentially causing damage to the business. Investing in cybersecurity solutions and professionals that identify threats and behavioral inconsistencies in the system is recommended, avoiding and containing incidents that could compromise the integrity of the environment and what is stored in it.
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Authenticity
The ability to authenticate information is crucial to ensure its reliability and consistency, so the systems that store and process it need to have resources that guarantee this. The accessibility of information, for example, can only be correctly managed through tools that guarantee the authentication of users’ access hierarchically and securely. At the same time, monitoring teams must be able to identify each active user on the system, analyzing and recognizing anomalous behavior patterns to find and contain active threats, lateral movements, and attempts to leak information.
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Confidentiality
One of the most critical factors about data and information today is directly linked to its confidentiality. Data privacy is currently a matter of concern, given the aforementioned new laws governing this matter. Privileged and confidential information is an excellent attraction for hackers and cybercriminals in general, who seek financial information, intellectual property of companies, PII (personally identifiable information), and others, aiming for its illegal use for the most diverse purposes. The answer to this problem lies in using defenses that effectively block unauthorized access to databases and systems with sensitive data, keeping constant monitoring of the activities of these environments. With this type of solution in use, it is possible to respond to suspicious actions quickly,
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Non-Repudiation
This principle is linked to the ability of a sender and a receiver within a network to receive, confirm receipt, and the sender’s identity. This guarantees not only the integrity of the process but, in a way, ends up encompassing the last pillars, insofar as the identity of the two ends of the communication is confirmed, as well as the integrity of the information in the process. Non-repudiated information, therefore, gathers important characteristics that attest to its reliability. For this, the tools and solutions mentioned above are essential, as they can monitor the entire environment, guaranteeing the identity of all elements of the environment and avoiding the loss or deviation of data in the transmission and processing process.
Technology, Intelligence, And Experience At The Service Of Security
For companies not specialized in security, even in the IT sector, maintaining all these Information Security pillars within the reality of their business can be a significant challenge. Automated defense tools are, without a doubt, a big step. Still, their operation and – beyond – their response capacity depends on experienced operators who know how to identify suspicious actions and take the appropriate measures quickly.
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