Client
A multinational financial services firm providing investment management, banking, and wealth management solutions. The firm handles highly sensitive financial data, including customer accounts, investment portfolios, and proprietary business information, all of which are subject to stringent data protection regulations.
Challenge
The financial services firm faced multiple challenges in preventing data leaks, ensuring that sensitive information was not accidentally or maliciously exposed to unauthorized parties:
- Preventing Insider Threats
The company’s employees had access to critical financial data, creating a potential risk for accidental or intentional data leaks. Monitoring and controlling access to sensitive information was a complex task, given the number of employees and partners involved. - Regulatory Compliance
The firm needed to ensure compliance with multiple regulations, including GDPR, CCPA, and PCI DSS, that required strict data handling practices to prevent unauthorized data access or leaks. - Managing Large Volumes of Sensitive Data
With vast amounts of sensitive financial data being processed daily, maintaining control and visibility over all data exchanges, including emails, documents, and cloud storage, was increasingly difficult. - Handling Third-Party Risks
The firm’s interactions with third-party vendors, consultants, and partners created additional challenges in ensuring that these external parties did not inadvertently or maliciously leak sensitive data.
Solution
To address these challenges, the financial services firm engaged COE Security to implement a comprehensive Data Leak Prevention (DLP) Security Operations solution, designed to proactively monitor, detect, and prevent data leaks across all environments.
Phase 1: Comprehensive Risk Assessment and Data Mapping
- Conducted a detailed assessment of the firm’s data landscape, identifying all sensitive information across departments, systems, and third-party vendors
- Mapped data flows to understand where sensitive data was stored, processed, and shared, allowing the team to establish security controls for each stage of the data lifecycle
- Evaluated the firm’s current DLP capabilities and identified gaps, including areas where sensitive data might be at risk of unauthorized access or inadvertent exposure
Phase 2: DLP Technology Implementation and Customization
- Deployed advanced DLP software tools across the organization to monitor and control data usage, ensuring that sensitive data could not be transferred or accessed without proper authorization
- Implemented endpoint DLP solutions to prevent data leaks via devices, including laptops, mobile phones, and USB drives, which were often overlooked in traditional security measures
- Configured the DLP software to automatically flag and block unauthorized attempts to share or send sensitive data through email, cloud storage, or external devices
- Introduced cloud-native DLP solutions to safeguard data exchanges in cloud environments, ensuring that data stored and shared across platforms like Google Drive, Dropbox, and Microsoft OneDrive was protected
Phase 3: Insider Threat Detection and Prevention
- Implemented advanced behavioral analytics to detect abnormal employee activities that could indicate potential insider threats, such as unusual data access patterns or unauthorized downloads
- Set up automated alerts and real-time notifications to flag suspicious activity, ensuring that the security team could respond quickly to potential data leak incidents
- Conducted regular employee training and awareness campaigns to educate staff on the risks of data leaks and how to follow best practices for handling sensitive information securely
Phase 4: Third-Party Risk Management
- Developed a vendor risk management framework to evaluate the security practices of third-party partners, ensuring they adhered to the firm’s data protection standards
- Introduced a DLP solution that monitored data exchanges with third parties, ensuring that sensitive data was encrypted, tracked, and controlled when shared externally
- Established clear data-sharing protocols with third parties, limiting access to the minimum required and ensuring that data was protected both during transmission and storage
Phase 5: Continuous Monitoring, Reporting, and Incident Response
- Set up a 24/7 monitoring system to track data usage, transfers, and storage across all systems, providing real-time alerts for any potential data leaks or security incidents
- Integrated DLP solutions with the company’s Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) system to ensure that all security events were logged and analyzed in real time
- Developed a detailed incident response plan, ensuring that in the event of a data leak, the firm could swiftly contain the incident, mitigate damage, and notify affected stakeholders in accordance with legal and regulatory requirements
- Provided regular security audits and compliance assessments to ensure that DLP strategies remained effective and aligned with changing regulatory requirements
Results
With COE Security’s Data Leak Prevention Security Operations solution, the financial services firm achieved:
- Enhanced Data Protection
Successfully mitigated the risk of unauthorized data access, ensuring that sensitive financial data was protected from leaks or exposure, whether accidental or malicious - Proactive Insider Threat Management
Implemented advanced monitoring tools to detect and prevent potential insider threats, reducing the risk of data leaks originating from within the organization - Regulatory Compliance
Achieved full compliance with GDPR, CCPA, PCI DSS, and other relevant data protection regulations, reducing the risk of non-compliance penalties and reputational damage - Real-Time Leak Prevention
Introduced real-time DLP technology that detected and blocked unauthorized data transfers, reducing the risk of data breaches and ensuring the integrity of sensitive financial information - Third-Party Security Assurance
Enhanced third-party risk management, ensuring that data exchanged with external vendors was protected, and mitigating potential risks associated with partner data handling
Client Testimonial
COE Security’s Data Leak Prevention Security Operations solution has transformed how we manage and protect sensitive data. Their comprehensive approach has given us peace of mind that our data is secure, whether accessed internally or shared with third parties. With real-time monitoring, proactive threat detection, and strong regulatory compliance, we’ve been able to significantly reduce the risk of data leaks and protect our clients’ most valuable information. COE Security’s expertise and support have been invaluable in strengthening our data protection strategy.