How to Mitigate the Risk of a Data Breach
A data breach occurs when personal information (PII) is accessed by an unauthorised individual or organisation. This can include personal details, financial details, and login credentials for email and social media accounts. It can also include medical records and intellectual property.
The impact of data breaches can be far-reaching and largely negative. They can lead to identity theft, which can damage a consumer’s credit and make it difficult to get loans or employment. They can also result in lost business for organisations who are unable to demonstrate their security measures and build trust with customers.
Data breaches occur through many different methods, including hacking, ransomware, malware infections, physical theft of devices or paper documents and skimming on devices that process payment cards. The breach of US retailer TJX (parent company to brands such as TJ Maxx and Marshalls) in 2007 was one of the largest and most costly consumer data breaches in history, with up to 94 million customer records stolen. The 2017 data breach of DNA testing company 23andMe was another high profile example, with hackers stealing highly personal genetic information and family tree data about 6.9 million users.
To mitigate the risk of a data breach, you should have a plan in place to handle the situation if it does happen, including identifying a team of experts and working with them to assess the situation. It’s also important to ensure that your systems are properly segmented so that a breach on one site or server won’t spread to other sites or servers.