Controlled Access to Confidential Data Is Crucial

If your company has information that is classified as private or confidential, having control over access to that information is vital. Access control is essential for any business with employees who are connected to the Internet. In its most basic form, access control is an exclusive restriction of information to certain individuals and under certain conditions according to Daniel Crowley, head of research for IBM’s X-Force Red team, which focuses on data security. There are two major components: authorization and authentication.

Authentication is the process of confirming that the person you want to gain access is the person they claim to be. It also includes verification a password or any other credentials that are required prior to granting access to a network, application, a file or system.

Authorization is the process of granting access to specific areas based on specific roles within a company such as HR, marketing, engineering and so on. Role-based access control (RBAC) is one of the most popular and effective ways to limit access. This kind of access is controlled by policies that define the required information to perform certain business functions and assigns access rights to the important link appropriate roles.

It is easier to control and monitor any changes when you have an access control policy that is standardized. It is important that policies are clearly communicated to staff to ensure that they handle sensitive information with care. Also, there should be an established procedure for revoking access to employees who leave the company, change their roles, or are dismissed.