Today’s world required secure document sharing

INTRODUCTION

In today’s technology driven world an astounding amount of digital data is transmitted over the internet on a daily, hourly, or even minutely basis. File sharing — the transfer of digital items from one device to another is a standard business practice in almost every industry. Today, employees can upload even extremely large files to cloud servers, and their colleagues across the world can view the content, make edits or add comments, and pass them back without ever having to download them.

This also offers significant cost benefits and results in revenue savings, since companies no longer need to purchase and maintain their own servers to host the data. It also offers flexibility: Team members can share files wherever they are to collaborate easily with both internal and external personnel, without ever having to worry about whether a file is too big for email. Unfortunately, this sort file sharing is also fraught with multiple security risks that include the following:

Data Leakage: Sharing files online to people outside of the company network can be great for collaboration, but it can also be a security nightmare. A document with intellectual property or regulated sensitive data can go to the wrong person, whether by accident or design. This is because you can advise your people to restrict access, but you might not be able to lock down their settings.

Account breaches: With many file-sharing platforms and collaboration tools, users set their own passwords. If a user chooses a weak password or reuses passwords from other sites, a malicious party could easily break into that user’s account to share or download proprietary content. So setting strong passwords and securely using them is very essential.

Lack of accountability: It could land the company in trouble if sensitive data is compromised. So there has to be a proper tracking and audit of activities.

Infected files: Not all data-sharing and collaboration platforms have the same level of encryption, and many let users accept files from third parties. If your teams are receiving and downloading files, your system could be at risk of infected files.

Shadow IT: When a company doesn’t have an official secure file sharing system that is approved and managed by the IT team, employees will find their own solutions. That’s how a company ends up with shadow IT- software and hardware that operates outside of the awareness of the IT department. When teams use shadow IT file sharing solutions, the entire corporate data system is at risk.

How can organizations make file sharing more secure?

A cloud storage service typically offers the most seamless experience. Some businesses choose a dedicated file-sharing service like Dropbox or Box, while others prefer Virtual Data Rooms that allow in-platform editing and commenting. Most file-sharing tools have security protection in place for all users. If you’re looking for something with granular permissions and enterprise controls, look for a good VDR.

• Choose a service with end-to-end encryption and granular permission settings.
• Implement strict security controls at the enterprise level.
• Standardize access rules to establish who can view, edit and download files.
• Audit file sharing activity regularly.
• Use secure passwords
• Limit download capabilities and set expiration dates for shared

With the right tools and data sharing platform like a state-of-the-art VDR your business will gain a modern way to control file sharing, messaging, and file transfer, all from a single platform. That’s why your secure file exchange system should feature:

• Advanced encryption for data in motion and at rest
• Structured user authentication
• Advanced logging, reporting, and dashboard tools
• Process automation capabilities
• Virus scanning and data loss prevention (DLP) features

The days of “unmanaged” file sharing processes are long over. An secure data sharing platform with built-in and secure file sharing capabilities reduces the risk of a data breach as well as potential non-compliance of regulatory obligations by a client. Hence VDR’s are the most preferred choice as of today for businesses looking for secure data storage and sharing.