It is a world of the internet and information is wealth. More and more businesses are learning that their data may be their most important asset. This has in turn made a key concern.
What is Enterprise Application Security?
It is the security of an Enterprise’s application against external threats and hacks. It safeguards one’s data from being stolen, hacked, exploited, tampered or being destroyed by external agents. For Enterprise Application Security, the elements like one’s hardware, staff, virtual machinery, third party software, etc must also be secured. Almost every element that is a part of or comes in contact with one’s enterprise Application presents a point of vulnerability. Each of these, in turn, may face countless threats. Thus the number of vulnerabilities can run in tens or hundreds of thousands and even more depending on the size of the enterprise.
Why is it so important?
Several factors make Enterprise Application Security important such as:
Data is the new gold
Whether it be customer personal data, orders or sales data, accounts, etc, one’s data is one’s most important asset. Data is the gold of our age – it is no longer some dull record-keeping for accountants. It is thus critical that it must be secured.
Privacy
More and more customers are growing privacy-conscious and want to know what is being done to keep their data safe. Moreover, laws in many countries may require that measures be taken to ensure the safety of the private data of customers.
Brand value
Data breaches can not only hit a brand hard. Even a top-level international brand had to suffer a decline in its brand value after a data breach.
Saves money
Many loyal customers may be lost after a data breach because of privacy concerns. Others may be lost due to lapses in services. Thirdly, you may lose money to threats like ransomware.
Where are some threats to my Enterprise Application arise?
The following are some enterprise Application threats:
Device-specific threats
If an employee is connecting to the enterprise data on a person device that device immediately becomes a point of vulnerability that can attract threats on account of
- It runs on an outdated operating system
- Third-party apps are installed in it. Even commonly used apps like WhatsApp can present such threats.
- A malignant piece of code may enter a device using its vulnerabilities and use its owner’s credentials to steal all one’s data from enterprise application.
How to deal with such threats?
Educating one’s employees about such threats will help one prevent such threats.
- Network-specific threats
Another important vulnerability arises when one’s enterprise application comes in contact with some unknown network (for example wifi). This particular point of vulnerability has grown in recent times due to the rise of ‘work from home’ culture due to the Covid-19 pandemic. More and more enterprise applications are being exposed to contact with the unknown, private networks. Some basic measures like network monitoring, antimalware protection software, etc can help shield this vulnerability.
Employee-specific threats
There are two reasons one’s employees may harm one’s enterprise software:
Maliciousness
Employees may intentionally create a data breach out of spite because they were fired or weren’t satisfied with their jobs or were bribed by other malicious elements.
Negligence
Even most well-trained employees may fall victim to phishing, opening malicious emails, etc.
Employee-based threats are not easy to eliminate but they can be reduced a great deal by a proper screening of recruits based on their moral character, training them properly, taking care of their morale, etc. Furthermore, information can be departmentalized and only availed on a need-to-know basis.
Of every 20 threats, 19 are caused by human error. Of these 19, 16 are caused by weak passwords and credentials being compromised. These vulnerabilities can be treated by two-factor authentication.
- App-specific threats
Several threats may arise out of the very nature of the enterprise itself. These include injection of malicious queries, flawed authentication, exposure of encrypted sensitive data, unsecured or incomplete security configurations, etc. An enterprise buying a new application must ensure that it is free of all known vulnerabilities and continuously make sure that the application continues to be secure of new vulnerabilities as and when they are discovered. Choosing top-notch software will help a great deal in preventing these threats.
What steps can be taken to safeguard my Enterprise data?
It must be remembered that prevention is better than cure when it comes to safeguarding your enterprise data.
The following measures should be taken to ensure the enterprise application security:
- Keep one’s software updated. It is best to set them on automatic updates.
- Keep all one’s data encrypted. Data must be kept encrypted at rest but also in transit.
- Teach and train all one’s employees about enterprise security.
- Follow a strict access control policy on a need-to-know basis. The fewer people have access to information, the fewer vulnerabilities.
- Require proper user authentication. Don’t let one’s employees keep weak passwords. Force password changes regularly and opts for two-factor authentication.
- You must identify all points of vulnerability.
- It is best if you monitor, track, and attack threats even if it means having a dedicated IT team for the purpose.
- Always update the software. Go to the update log and take a note of how critical the update is.
- Keep employee morale high. While you can provide against negligent employees, there is no sure way to guard against a disgruntled employee.
- Monitor unknown networks and scan unknown devices. Make sure your employees’ devices have the latest operating systems and their antimalware software installed.
- It is best if you make enterprise application security a top priority for the organization.
- Consider providing employees with dedicated devices just for work.
While enterprise application threats can never be eliminated, adopting these measures can help a great deal in reducing these threats.
Last word
Enterprise is growing to be an essential part and parcel of day-to-day business operations. It is important to treat it as a part of business operations. It must be remembered that enterprise application security is the responsibility of everyone in the organization.