Free Collaboration Data Protection Resources for IT and Security Officers

Your organization’s collaboration data is at risk. Learn how to take charge of your tools and secure your information with these free resources. 

Collaboration tools are everywhere. From Microsoft Teams to Slack, WebEx and Zoom Chat to Workplace from Meta. Everywhere your people do business, they’re sending messages and creating data.

Unmanaged, that data represents new risks to the organization. IT leaders are in the unique position of being able to see the blind spots in the organization and take the lead on collaboration data protection.

It does appear that the attacker downloaded some internal Slack messages — Uber security update 

Collaboration data isn’t just a potential minefield for the modern enterprise. It’s an active target of hackers and malicious actors, as Uber learned to its cost in September 2022. If a threat actor exfiltrated your organization’s collaboration messages, what would they find? How much restricted information, IP, industry secrets — or message content that’s just plain embarrassing if it was seen on a national stage? 

At Aware, safeguarding collaboration data is what we do best. That’s why some of the world’s most powerful organizations trust us to help them secure their collaboration networks. Using these free resources, you too can take a proactive approach to data protection in collaboration — before it’s too late. 

Potential Causes and Cost of a Collaboration Platform Data Breach to Your Enterprise 

How do insider threats take hold within collaboration environments? And what damage can they cause before detection? In this article, we explore the top risk factors associated with insider threats, and how collaboration tools have accelerated the ability of a malicious or negligent actor to exfiltrate critical data from the enterprise. 

Modern Workspace Security: Don’t Block Your People, Coach Them 

With data protection top of mind for many businesses, it’s tempting to restrict employee access to the digital workplace. However, evidence suggests that locking down collaboration can do more harm than good. Deprived of the tools to work effectively, employees will find their own, introducing unmanaged freemium shadow IT solutions into the workplace. 

Safeguarding collaboration data must begin with coaching employees, not blocking them. Education, not prohibition, is the only way to prevent unwanted behaviors. Read the post to learn more about finding the sweet spot that unlocks the benefits of collaboration while protecting the data it contains. 

The Hidden Cost of Security-Related Consent Decrees - The Secret Weapon of Regulatory Agencies 

What is the real cost of collaboration data security? If IT leaders start uncovering risks hidden within collaboration blind spots, they become obliged to mitigate them. For some organizations, it might seem the safer choice to remain blissfully ignorant of what dangers their collaboration data contains. 

However, courts and regulators have made it clear that ignorance of collaboration data contents is no excuse in the eyes of the law. With fines levied against the Fortune 500 crossing $1.8 billion in 2022 alone for failing to regulate collaboration tools, it is time for organizations to act. 

But it isn’t only fines that companies should fear if their collaboration data security is found wanting. Consent decrees can impact businesses for decades, requiring them to foot the bill for costly and time-consuming annual audits. Learn what a consent decree might mean for your organization and how you can act to secure your collaboration data now. 

5 Steps to a Successful Collaborative Data Governance Policy 

Controlling the chaos of your collaboration data might seem like an impossible task. Between the range of tools in use, the combination of public and private messages, and the addition of complex objects like emojis, attachments, reactions and more, where do you start to take charge? 

In these five simple steps, we outline how to approach securing collaboration datasets. Understand your objectives and make informed decisions about the value of the data your collaboration tools hold. Creating meaningful strategies for data protection is a necessary challenge and this brief guide gives IT officers the tools to make it happen. 

Cover Your Apps: A Quick Checklist for Collaboration Security 

IT officers don’t have to work alone to ensure collaboration data protection. You should build a team with colleagues from legal, compliance, information security, HR and similar departments to help you manage all the nuances of this new dataset. This checklist explores the steps that business leaders should take to consolidate control of collaboration data, formalize processes to manage the volume, and enable faster, more effective data control and protection. Download your copy now.