Ensure DLP Controls and Visibility for Remote Workers

Secure remote worker use case 4: Data Loss Prevention and visibility

Today’s workers have been flung to the far reaches of the Internet, forcing them to log in and gain access to critical business applications and data in the cloud from unsecured residential and public Internet connections. Understandably, this lack of control and visibility is keeping cybersecurity professionals up at night, wondering whether data is being exposed on the edge of this new network architecture.

The key to keeping data safe through a data loss prevention (DLP) program is visibility. Security teams need to have visibility into what data is being accessed, by whom, and when. Traditionally, this visibility is provided through a VPN that backhauls traffic outside of the network and into the data center, where it can be monitored and the appropriate policies and services can be applied. However, routing all traffic through a VPN increases latency—inhibiting network performance and user productivity.

See how VPNs are being overwhelmed during the global pandemic.

Organizations can get around this inhibitor by creating a local Internet breakout for each remote user or location (such as a branch office), but as Covid-19 has forced a near 100 percent work-from-home mandate, scaling security infrastructure to every home office or public Wi-Fi is impossible.

The only way to provide consistent data protection for all users and devices—regardless of whether or not they are inside the corporate firewall—is to deliver security services through the cloud.  

Cloud security ensures that policies follow remote users wherever business takes them—whether it’s a branch office, a customer site, a home office, or public Wi-Fi. A cloud-based secure web gateway (SWG) acts as the central security control point for all traffic, providing a separate security layer in the cloud through which all web traffic flows. It’s here where security policies can be applied. The SWG provides security teams with visibility of all data as well as the ability to apply security controls such as URL filtering, SaaS access control, and DLP services.

It is critical that cloud-delivered security gives organizations the ability to know where sensitive data lies and who has access to it in the cloud. This includes when sensitive data is being uploaded, exfiltrated out of a secure location, and accessed by an unauthorized entity. Notifications and trigger events need to be sent to data protection officers so they are aware of a violation and can act accordingly. Only then can security teams feel confident that sensitive data being accessed by remote users on the edge of the network is secure.

Read our new ebook, Securing the Future of Work, to learn how you can protect data in the new normal.

Learn more about how Menlo Security helps organizations follow ASD’s Essential Eight recommendations for mitigating risk.