Data Security

Video Summary:

Data security is a critical aspect of data governance focused on protecting data from unauthorized access, corruption, or breaches. It ensures the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data, commonly referred to as the CIA triad. To safeguard data, various methods like encryption, access controls, and network security are employed. Data security is essential at all layers of data handling to ensure compliance and prevent cybercrime, financial losses, and reputational damage.

Key components of data security include:

• Access Controls: Defining who can access data and ensuring segregation of duties.
• Data Encryption: Scrambling data so that it cannot be compromised, ensuring privacy.
• Data Backup & Recovery: Ensuring business continuity during disasters.
• Network Security: Implementing firewalls and security protocols.
• Security Compliance: Following legal requirements and industry standards.

In the context of data governance, data security plays a vital role in maintaining and managing data securely throughout its lifecycle. Governance establishes policies and processes, while security enforces protection. This involves assigning permissions, applying encryption, managing compliance, and training employees in security best practices.

Real-Life Application

In real life, data security is applied across multiple industries to protect both sensitive personal and business data. For example, Equifax suffered a major data breach in 2017 that exposed personal information of over 147 million people, including Social Security numbers. This breach occurred due to poor data security practices like failing to patch a known vulnerability. If proper access controls, encryption, and employee training had been in place, the damage could have been significantly reduced.

Another example is banks using encryption to protect customer data during online transactions. Data is scrambled to make it unreadable to hackers during transmission, ensuring privacy and integrity. Without encryption, customer data could be easily stolen, leading to identity theft and financial fraud.

Mnemonic Reviewer:

• CIA: Confidentiality, Integrity, Availability
• AC-B-N-E-S:
  • A: Access Controls
  • C: Compliance
  • B: Backup & Recovery
  • N: Network Security
  • E: Encryption
  • S: Security Training