PCI-DSS Audit

PCI-DSS, the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, was established on September 7, 2006. This standard safeguards individuals who share their credit card information with organizations such as banks and healthcare companies. Maintaining PCI-DSS compliance involves a comprehensive project with tasks like risk assessment, regular documentation updates on data flow, monitoring for malicious activities, and keeping current with PCI-DSS changes. Non-compliance can result in significant penalties. Understanding data sensitivity and vulnerabilities in the cloud is fundamental to PCI-DSS and compliance. Effectively identifying sensitive data elements and assessing risk demands significant investments of time, money, and resources.   PCI-DSS Audit The PCI-DSS audit involves a thorough examination of your security infrastructure, focusing on sensitive data elements such as bank account and routing numbers. The auditor identifies security gaps, if any, and may require remediation. Recommendations for preventive measures may include documenting data flow, current data privacy practices, and more. Engaging a third party for an audit may seem daunting, similar to a medical check-up. Such audits serve not only to address existing concerns but also to ensure proper documentation of sensitive data inventory and protective measures in case of security breaches. For a smoother audit process, proactively optimize your organization’s practices for PCI-DSS compliance.   What You Can Do To take charge during the audit, prepare by taking the following steps to mitigate potential fines and ensure compliance with standards. 1. Achieve PCI-DSS Certification Obtain PCI-DSS certification every 90 days or once per quarter, based on the volume of transactions. The certification involves a cloud risk assessment tailored to PCI-DSS requirements and transaction volumes. …. Level Business Volume Recommended Actions 1 6 million+ transactions/year Annual internal audit Quarterly PCI scans 2 1-6 million transactions/year Annual risk assessment with SAQ Quarterly PCI scans

On-Premise vs Cloud Data Privacy

In today’s data landscape, whether data is stored on-premises or in the cloud, robust data privacy and cybersecurity standards are essential to safeguard sensitive information from malicious exploitation. To maintain these standards, various regulatory activities such as auditing, role-based policies (RBAC), and continuous monitoring are in place. However, the cornerstone of effective data protection begins with a critical step: identifying sensitive data and assessing associated risks. Once you understand where sensitive data resides and comprehensively analyze potential risks, you can implement robust data privacy and cybersecurity measures.   Challenge The challenge lies in accurately identifying sensitive data across the entire enterprise and conducting thorough risk analysis. This process is not only time-consuming but also susceptible to human error. Tools designed for data discovery may encounter their own set of challenges, such as incomplete identification of sensitive data or limitations in scanning beyond surface-level attributes like column names without delving into document contents. At C² Data Technology, we recognize these challenges and offer advanced solutions to address them. Our cutting-edge tools leverage sophisticated algorithms and machine learning to ensure comprehensive discovery and precise risk analysis. By partnering with us, organizations can streamline their data protection efforts and fortify their cybersecurity posture with confidence. Embrace the journey towards robust data privacy and cybersecurity. Let C² Data Technology be your trusted partner in navigating these complexities. Contact us today to explore how our innovative solutions can elevate your data protection strategy and safeguard your sensitive information effectively. Together, we can build a secure and resilient foundation for your digital assets. Solution  Introducing the C² Data Privacy Platform—a robust solution engineered to empower organizations with unparalleled visibility into the location of sensitive data across the entire enterprise, coupled with advanced data protection measures.   C² Manage Gain comprehensive visibility into all data regions within your AWS account with C² Manage. This capability forms a solid foundation for extensive data discovery, answering the critical question: “Where is my data stored?” Efficient management of AWS accounts also enables cost optimization, enhancing operational efficiency.   C² Discover Leveraging cutting-edge technologies such as machine learning, AI, and contextual knowledge, C² Discover excels in pinpointing sensitive data across diverse enterprise data connections. It meticulously identifies the exact locations of sensitive data, even in the most obscure corners of your data ecosystem.   C² Secure Leveraging cutting-edge technologies such as machine learning, AI, and contextual knowledge, C² Discover excels in pinpointing sensitive data across diverse enterprise data connections. It meticulously identifies the exact locations of sensitive data, even in the most obscure corners of your data ecosystem.   A Complete Regulatory Solution For a fool-proof approach to compliance initiatives, apply precise roles and policies to protect your data, ensuring seamless adherence to regulations. At C² Data Technology, we understand the complexities of modern data environments. Our C² Data Privacy Platform empowers organizations to navigate these challenges with confidence. Gain clarity, ensure compliance, and fortify your data security strategy with C² Data—your proactive partner in comprehensive data privacy management. Furthermore, our platform connects you with legal professionals and privacy experts who specialize in data protection. Their expert guidance ensures that your organization achieves full compliance, mitigates legal risks, and enhances your overall data governance framework. Choosing C² Data means empowering your organization with robust data privacy solutions to thrive in today’s dynamic regulatory landscape. At C² Data Technology, we believe that complying with data privacy regulations is more than a checkbox exercise—it’s an opportunity to demonstrate your commitment to customers and their privacy. Prioritizing data privacy not only upholds ethical standards but also strengthens your organization’s reputation. Don’t let data privacy regulations overwhelm you. Embrace the journey with us at C² Data Technology. Let C² Discover be your trusted partner along the way. Request a demo today and see how our powerful tools can transform your data privacy compliance efforts. Together, we can build a more secure and trustworthy digital future.

You don’t need a cloud security audit

According to Tech Target, a cloud security audit is a periodic assessment of an organization’s ability to assess and document its vendor’s performance. An audit can be done internally or externally and should be done at least annually. What’s involved in a cloud security audit? During the cloud security audit, a lot of ground will be covered by the person who is orchestrating the audit. Below are the main things that a cloud security audit will often cover. Current Compliance with Industry Regulations and Standards Being compliant with the required standards and standards for your organization’s industry is essential to the success of your audit and your organization. Failure to do so will result in fines that may put a major dent in your organization’s wallet. Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability of Your Data Knowing that the organization keeps the integrity and confidentiality of the data will ensure that the organization isn’t abusing it as it’s being stored. Current Security Controls Having a working security system is a core part of the audit. If it’s not working properly or at all, then you have no protection, which may result in paying fines for compliances, regulations, and standards, and those fines will add up. Risk Assessments Understanding your risk exposure is a necessity when it comes to cloud security. Knowing the cloud’s vulnerabilities will help map out the lines of defense, and will make your data privacy solution more complex. Recommendation of Improvements in Security Posture Having security in place is great in general, but there’s always more than we can do to prevent malicious attacks. Knowing and practicing preventative measures may reduce the risk of any attack in the future. While this process may feel overwhelming, there’s always something you can do now to ensure that you’re cloud security audit goes as smoothly as possible. Be Proactive, not Reactive. Identify cloud providers being used. Knowing what cloud providers are being used in your cloud ecosystem displays the full picture of your cloud security. This also gives you a chance to compare and contrast their purpose with your cloud objectives for the organization. If they are no longer meeting the objectives, it has no reason to be part of the ecosystem, resulting in lessening the vulnerability. Understand what is being provided by the provider. Every cloud provider’s responsibility for cloud security may not be the same across the board. It’s important to know: What they are currently controlling What they can control if they aren’t controlling now, if they aren’t What is your responsibility Doing this exercise maps out what is covered by the cloud and what needs to be protected by you. This step is also monumental because it initiates important discussions: like identifying the future of the cloud and what is needed to achieve it. Identify who has access to the cloud. Every user added to the cloud can be posed as a risk. If someone has access to the data they don’t need, it can leave the datasets compromised if a malicious attack were to occur. To lessen the magnitude of the risk, make sure that your organization has authorization and authentication, for the necessary people only, in place. Encrypt Data in transit and at rest To ensure that the actual data being tested, queried, or stored is being protected, consider it encrypted to ensure safety throughout the dataset’s lifetime in the cloud. Monitor the Cloud Identifying suspicious activity in the cloud may be challenging if there isn’t a standard to compare it to. Educate yourself and inform your team of what’s normal and what’s not in case of any malicious attacks. This also makes everyone conscious of what is entering and leaving the cloud. While monitoring the cloud may be used for pinpointing suspicious activity but may be able to be used for catching human error. We all make errors, and being able to catch any human error right away, can avoid compromising situations. Keeping data up to date To ensure effective cloud security, maintaining the cloud is crucial as it identifies what data has a reason for being in the cloud, and what can pose a threat to the security of the cloud. This can also be used as an exercise that forces the organization to clean out the cloud in the hopes of optimizing the storage and functions of the cloud.   With the help of the preventative measures mentioned above, a major job any organization can benefit from is understanding the data being stored in the cloud.   How C² Data Can Help The C² Data Privacy Platform is your powerful, all-in-one solution for managing and securing data across enterprise cloud and hybrid environments. It handles data management, discovery, and security with ease. Key Features: C² Manage: Gain full visibility into all data regions within your AWS account, laying the foundation for comprehensive data discovery by answering the crucial question: “Where is my data stored?” Turn on and off the unnecessary accounts to reduce AWS costs. C² Discover: Leverage cutting-edge data discovery techniques, including machine learning, AI, and contextual knowledge, to accurately analyze and identify sensitive data across various sources in various data sources, relational databases, NoSQL, Data Lakes, and Data Warehouses. C² Discover provides a unified view of data locations, highlights areas with high concentrations of sensitive information, and assigns the risk scores based on what types and how much sensitive data was found. C² Secure: Protect your discovered data with expert recommendations on encryption, masking, synthesis, and redaction. With over 21 years of experience serving Fortune 500 clients, C² Secure ensures your sensitive data is effectively safeguarded.

Can you meet compliance requirements on the cloud

Meeting compliance requirements is mandatory whether you’re storing data on-premise or in the cloud. If you’re in compliance with both, HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, and CCPA, the California Consumer Protection Act, you’re most likely in compliance with the other US-specific compliances. The main international compliances are GDPR, the Global Data Protection Regulation, and LGPD, the Brazilian data protection regulation. How to meet compliance in the cloud Step 1: Identifying What Needs to Be Protected Many compliances are concerned with where and how consumer data are being stored. And understanding what is considered consumer’s data can be complex because it’s not limited to names, addresses, social security numbers, credit card numbers, and birth dates. Step 2: Add Your Protection The method of protection is up to your organization. Some organizations just require a firewall, some require keeping sensitive data on a VPN, and others require masking or encrypting.  From our experience, organizations tend to like locking it down, encrypting, and masking. Step 3: Repeat It’s important to periodically run your identification process and continuously protect it because data may end up in the cloud, whether you know it or not. This process can be automated, giving the organization’s data privacy officer one less thang to do, but it’s heavily advised to take a look into the process to ensure that the whole process is working as it should. Step 4: Meet the Compliance As technology continues to be innovative, stay up to date with the compliance that applies to your organization because the organization can avoid hefty fines.   How C² Discover can help C² Discover is your cloud-native sensitive data identifier. By connecting it to your relational database, NoSQL, data lakes, and data warehouses, C² Discover uses machine learning and AI technology to comb through your cloud data to identify all the sensitive data to meet compliance regulations and standards. Once the discovery is complete, the results go through to our user-friendly user interface. the interactive user interfaces present you with the views of your sensitive data from an overview to a granular view of a singular sensitive data element. At C² Data Technology, we believe in giving you insights into your cloud that turbocharge your data privacy mission.

Complying with Data Privacy Regulations

Ensuring Compliance with Data Privacy Regulations In today’s data-driven environment, protecting sensitive information is crucial. C² Data Technology provides solutions to the significant challenges businesses face in adhering to data privacy regulations. Our objective is to provide you with the necessary tools and expertise to effectively navigate this intricate landscape. Data privacy regulations play a vital role in safeguarding individuals’ personal information, whether they are EU citizens, residents of California, or holders of financial and health data, from threats like data breaches, malware, ransomware, and more. Despite having robust policies in place, the risk of breaches remains. It is essential for organizations to have a clear understanding of the location of their sensitive data, which may be found in unexpected places beyond traditional storage locations. At C² Data Technology, we specialize in offering solutions that provide comprehensive visibility into your data ecosystem. Our advanced technologies empower you to identify and safeguard sensitive data wherever it may be, ensuring compliance and enhancing your overall security posture. By partnering with us, you not only gain peace of mind but also the confidence to innovate and thrive in today’s data-driven economy. Allow us to guide you through the intricacies of data privacy and security so that you can concentrate on what truly matters—your business’s success and earning the trust of your stakeholders.   Introducing C² Data Privacy Platform Presenting the C² Data Privacy Platform—a robust solution designed to provide organizations with unparalleled visibility into the location of sensitive data across the entire enterprise, along with advanced data protection measures.   C² Manage Access comprehensive visibility into all data regions within your AWS account with C² Manage. This capability forms a solid foundation for extensive data discovery, answering the critical question: “Where is my data stored?” Efficient management of AWS accounts also enables cost optimization, enhancing operational efficiency.   C² Discover Utilizing state-of-the-art technologies such as machine learning, AI, and contextual knowledge, C² Discover excels at identifying sensitive data across various enterprise data connections. It meticulously locates sensitive data, even in the most remote corners of your data ecosystem.   C² Secure Employing advanced technologies such as machine learning, AI, and contextual knowledge, C² Discover excels at identifying sensitive data across diverse enterprise data connections. It meticulously locates sensitive data, even in the most remote corners of your data ecosystem.   A Comprehensive Regulatory Solution For a fool-proof approach to compliance initiatives, apply precise roles and policies to protect your data, ensuring seamless adherence to regulations. At C² Data Technology, we grasp the complexities of modern data environments. Our C² Data Privacy Platform enables organizations to navigate these challenges with assurance. Gain clarity, ensure compliance, and reinforce your data security strategy with C² Data—your proactive partner in comprehensive data privacy management. Moreover, our platform connects you with legal professionals and privacy experts specializing in data protection. Their expert guidance guarantees that your organization achieves full compliance, reduces legal risks, and strengthens your overall data governance framework. Selecting C² Data means empowering your organization with robust data privacy solutions to thrive in today’s dynamic regulatory landscape. At C² Data Technology, we firmly believe that complying with data privacy regulations goes beyond a mere checkbox exercise—it’s an opportunity to demonstrate your dedication to customers and their privacy. Prioritizing data privacy not only upholds ethical standards but also enhances your organization’s reputation. Do not allow data privacy regulations to overwhelm you. Embrace the journey with us at C² Data Technology. Let C² Discover become your trusted partner along the way. Request a demo today and witness how our powerful tools can enhance your data privacy compliance efforts. Together, we can establish a more secure and trustworthy digital future.

Who Has Access to Your Cloud Data

From researching which cloud to the logistics of implementing it into your company can be overwhelming. Questions flood your brain like: Can I trust this cloud provider with my company’s sensitive data? What are the safety protocols for this server? Who has access to the cloud data?   The cloud’s safety and the protection of the actual data in the cloud is everyone’s concern. No one wants to have their data exposed to a third party without our consent. However, there are things that we can do to protect what’s in the cloud.  Who Has Access to Your Cloud Data No matter which cloud you choose, only 3 groups of individuals can get access to the cloud: the Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB), your company, and the individuals to who you grant access to the cloud.   Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB) sits between a cloud service customer and the cloud service provider. Whenever the data on the cloud is being accessed, they enforce the organization’s security policies by managing risk identification and the company’s compliance with the necessary regulations.   Once you get a cloud, the company controls who has access to the cloud through authorized log-in, and the provider.    Be Proactive, Not Reactive With Cloud Data There are always steps we can take as individuals, as a company, and for the cloud.  Individuals  Require a password to access the cloud, and change it every 90 days  Log off after using the cloud  Avoid using public networks when accessing the cloud   Reduce the number of downloads on the server   Company  Look at internal policies  Lock all devices   Require multi-factor authentication or 2-factor authentication  Apply strict role assignments  Cloud  Backups   Monitor upgrades  Protect your data  Take care of overseas servers    Meet the C² Data Privacy Platform The C² Data Privacy Platform is your powerful, all-in-one solution for managing and securing data across enterprise cloud and hybrid environments. It handles data management, discovery, and security with ease. Key Features: C² Manage: Gain full visibility into all data regions within your AWS account, laying the foundation for comprehensive data discovery by answering the crucial question: “Where is my data stored?” Turn on and off the unnecessary accounts to reduce AWS costs. C² Discover: Leverage cutting-edge data discovery techniques, including machine learning, AI, and contextual knowledge, to accurately analyze and identify sensitive data across various sources in various different data sources, relational databases, NoSQL, Data Lakes, and Data Warehouses. C² Discover provides a unified view of data locations, highlights areas with high concentrations of sensitive information, and assigns the risk scores based on what types and how much sensitive data was found. C² Secure: Protect your discovered data with expert recommendations on encryption, masking, synthesis, and redaction. With over 21 years of experience serving Fortune 500 clients, C² Secure ensures your sensitive data is effectively safeguarded.

Do All Clouds Have the Same Data Protection?

Companies, now prefer using the cloud because it’s cheaper to store files, it’s flexible, and it allows users to access it regardless of where they are located. There are four types of clouds, private, public, hybrid, and multi-cloud. Based on the type of cloud, the level of security varies. Private Cloud and Cloud Protection A private cloud is a server that allows hardware and software resources that be controlled and addressed by one user. That means that it’s owned by a user and receives the most security since the owner can customize the infrastructure. However, it comes at a substantial cost because it gives you maximum control over what goes in, what comes out, how it’s protected, and who has access.   Public Clouds and Cloud Protection Public clouds are on-demand servers for organizations and individuals who can gain access to the cloud through the Internet. This makes them owned by a public cloud service provider. This type of cloud requires the users to rely on themselves and the cloud service provider for protection.   Hybrid Clouds Protection A hybrid cloud is a combination of computing environments, public clouds and private clouds, and on-prem and cloud data centers. This is because some applications in the IT ecosystem are run on computing, storage, and services in a variety of environments, resulting in the protection heavily relying on third-party applications and you. The users would have to rely on themselves.   Multi-Clouds and Cloud Protection Multiclouds use two or more clouds to achieve different tasks. This allows the user to complete a task while taking advantage of the benefits and functionality of the different clouds. As the other clouds discussed, the security responsibility is on the user. Regardless, of the data protection level and who provides the protection, knowing your exposure and your risk level is something that always needs to be known. Meet the C² Data Privacy Platform The C² Data Privacy Platform is your powerful, all-in-one solution for managing and securing data across enterprise cloud and hybrid environments. It handles data management, discovery, and security with ease.   Key Features: C² Manage: Gain full visibility into all data regions within your AWS account, laying the foundation for comprehensive data discovery by answering the crucial question: “Where is my data stored?” Turn on and off the unnecessary accounts to reduce AWS costs. C² Discover: Leverage cutting-edge data discovery techniques, including machine learning, AI, and contextual knowledge, to accurately analyze and identify sensitive data across various sources in various data sources, relational databases, NoSQL, Data Lakes, and Data Warehouses. C² Discover provides a unified view of data locations, highlights areas with high concentrations of sensitive information, and assigns the risk scores based on what types and how much sensitive data was found. C² Secure: Protect your discovered data with expert recommendations on encryption, masking, synthesis, and redaction. With over 21 years of experience serving Fortune 500 clients, C² Secure ensures your sensitive data is effectively safeguarded.

Cloud Security, Do You Need It?

Profitable Data Management

The cloud stores data in a remote location that is accessed via the internet so you can share your files and data, and has some built-in ways to protect your data:  Back up your data to the cloud  No need for external hard drives  Remotely update and sync your files  Share your files easily   Remote work made easy   Keep your files encrypted    Cloud Security The cloud provider’s job isn’t just to house the data of companies, it’s to also ensure the cloud users how safe it is. When developing the cloud, they focused on: user and device authentication, data and resource access control, and data privacy protection.   To achieve optimum security, they start with secure access control, zero-trust network, change management, web application firewall, data protection, and continuous monitoring.     6 Pillars of Cloud Security Secure Access Control: secure Identity Access Management (IAM) protocol; access to what they need and that’s all   Zero-Trust Network Security Controls: separating the data from what needs to be protected and what doesn’t   Change Management: management has control over governance and compliance when there is a request; can catch any suspicious activity   Web Application Firewall: added protection to add a blockade to breachers à serves as an indicator of suspicious behavior   Data Protection: strongly encourage encrypting files and have a plan of what to do if there is suspicious activity and breach   Continuous Monitoring: comparing to older logs and auditing      Let’s Get in the Mind of the Hackers The object of the game is you must get money or something that will lead to the money like credit card information, social security, someone’s identification, etc. Before, they relied on pickpocketing and scamming scenarios to get quick cash. With everything becoming digital, added tactics like phishing emails and malware to get your information. Two common events happen: they get access to the data and expose known data that isn’t fictionalized, or they expose data that you didn’t know residing in the cloud that wasn’t fictionalized.      What You Can Do No matter what you do to your cloud security process, hackers are going to try to get their paycheck. Here are things we can do to add to the existing security protocol:   Move sensitive data off the cloud  Encrypt sensitive data   Change your passwords   Require 2-factor authentication/multifactor authentication  Invest in firewalls on email servers  Educate yourself and the company to make sure   Know what information is on the cloud    How Can C² Discover Help? The C² Data Privacy Platform is your all-in-one solution for managing and securing data across enterprise cloud and hybrid environments. It handles data management, discovery, and security with ease.   Key Features: C² Manage: Gain full visibility into all data regions within your AWS account, laying the foundation for comprehensive data discovery by answering the crucial question: “Where is my data stored?” Turn on and off the unnecessary accounts to reduce AWS costs. C² Discover: Leverage cutting-edge data discovery techniques, including machine learning, AI, and contextual knowledge, to accurately analyze and identify sensitive data across various sources in various data types, structured, unstructured, and semi-structured. C² Discover provides a unified view of data locations, highlights areas with high concentrations of sensitive information, and assigns the risk scores based on what types and how much sensitive data was found. C² Secure: Protect your discovered data with expert recommendations on encryption, masking, synthesis, and redaction. With over 21 years of experience serving Fortune 500 clients, C² Secure ensures your sensitive data is effectively safeguarded.

The Problem with Regex-Based Discovery

Regex-Based-Discovery

Unlocking the Potential: Beyond the Limitations of Regex-based Discovery In today’s data-driven world, regex-based discovery has proven to be a valuable tool for pattern matching. However, it’s important to recognize the challenges that come with it, as patterns Unlocking the Potential: Beyond the Limitations of Regex-based Discovery In today’s data-driven world, regex-based discovery has proven to be a valuable tool for pattern matching. However, it’s important to recognize the challenges that come with it, as patterns…