Stopping disc content

It’s also important to remember that hard disks are only one storage medium on a typical laptop. This brings us to the second area for endpoint security: management and control of data leakage. This means controlling the flow of data onto peripheral devices such as CD, DVD or USB drives and portable storage media, including mp3 players and digital cameras.

The starting point for protection against leaks via these USB devices is to include them in the corporate acceptable usage policy (AUP) and to educate all users on the importance of following policy – and the risks of breaching that policy.

Policies also need to be backed up and enforced by port control solutions, which can automatically block a USB device that does not comply with the security policy, or prevent the transfer of certain files or file types.

At the end(point)

This leads us to the third area of endpoint security: protecting the data on the machine from software threats, such as malicious code.

Effective endpoint security starts with every machine running a firewall and antivirus protection with up-to-date signatures before it is granted a connection to the central network. The endpoint security client should also ensure that the laptop is running the appropriate software patches and includes Virtual Private Networking (VPN) for secure transfer of corporate information back to the network – all managed centrally.

In conclusion, it’s easy to be complacent on the issue of data leaks. Yet it’s also easy to put measures in place that drastically reduce the chance of data leaks happening. Wouldn’t you rather be safe in the knowledge that you’re secured against leaks, than run the risk of losing disc content this winter?