There is a regular parade of stories in the media about companies accidentally losing data, either as a printout or in digital form.
Traditionally the focus for security is on preventing external threats such as viruses and hackers. However, internal threats like leaks or the unauthorised distribution of secure content are a potentially costly security breach that needs to be addressed.
Companies therefore need to be able to identify and combat these threats and prevent the unauthorised release of paper and digital documents. To assist with this process, Lexmark recommends five steps that businesses can take to negate the potential for leaking information – be it intentionally or by accident:
Encryption
Hard disks in printers and MFPs can be configured to use encryption. This ensures all data sent to – and stored by – the printer or MFP is encrypted.
Authentication
Having users authenticate themselves (with a PIN or employee card) and only releasing information ensures documents can only be collected by that individual. This can be augmented with security templates and/or automatic email address insertion for workflow and scanning.
Monitor flow of sensitive information
Implement a tool that monitors and audits the information that passes output devices to stop unauthorised flow of sensitive information. This means creating a searchable digital image file of every document that is printed, scanned, copied or faxed (regardless of source). A secure content monitor will give an organisation the information needed to spot leaks and to establish a strong defence.
Network device hardening
An unsecured printer or MFP connected to the corporate network can be a vulnerability that can be exploited by external hackers and internal threats. ‘Hardening’ these devices through techniques like port filtering and TCP connection filtering can make them resilient to network attacks.
A shredder
Once sensitive information is printed it’s out of the hands of digital protection. A good quality shredder can make sure that physical copies don’t fall into the wrong hands once they’re done with.
Protecting sensitive information remains a top priority for businesses. Lexmark has a range of solutions and elements that help organisations to keep a close eye on data – protecting it every step of the way.