Operating systems and applications can always be reinstalled, but your data is unique, making them the most important thing on your computer or network.
“Organizations must now maintain robust privacy measures, including clear privacy policies, opt-out processes and compliance with consumer protection legislation, to mitigate financial and reputation risks,” IEEE Senior member Kayne McGladrey said in an email to TechPublic.
Here are 10 ways you can protect this data from losses and unauthorized access.
1. Protect everything with passwords
Password protection is the first defense line against unauthorized access to your data; It also helps to increase multi -layer security for your systems by allowing you to combine password protection with other security measures. Some companies are required to use password protection as part of the compliance rules, such as the General Data Protection Regulation.
To protect your business data, implement a strict password policy to ensure employees create complex passwords. In addition, you need to get them to update their passwords regularly.
2. Back up regularly
Backing up your data early and regularly is an important component of a data loss strategy. Data loss can happen due to cyber attacks, natural disasters, human mistakes and other events. If you back up your data, you can recover them after losing data.
While manual backup works, you also need to consider data backup solutions that automatically back up data based on a schedule you can configure. Several sophisticated backup solutions allow you to choose the data to be backed up.
3. Keep business software updated
Keep your business software updated to make sure it has the latest security fixes, bug fixes and other updates to protect against new and existing cyber security threats. Most cyberattacks are taking advantage of newly found security vulnerability, so be aware of keeping your business software up to date for the latest version.
See: Threat actors jailbreak generative AI to use it to design phishing -e emails and ignore protective measures.
4. Use a VPN
Virtual private networks are good at keeping your business data secure. A VPN creates an encrypted tunnel for your data, hides them from hackers and other malicious actors; It also helps to minimize your online footprint.
A VPN is a must for employees who connect to business networks or gain access to sensitive files from their homes or while traveling. While you can use a free VPN service, you should ideally invest invest in a paid VPN subscription from a reputable provider. Paid VPN versions offer more reliable connections, dedicated servers and other premium features.
5. Install antivirus -Software
Modern antivirus software helps protect data from ransomware, spyware, Trojan horses, browser maps and other cyber threats. While an Antivirus SoftWar License for a company is at a price, it is a relatively small price to pay to keep your data secure.
If you are using Windows 10 or higher, you have already installed antivirus software. MAC computers have a relatively closed ecosystem and built-in malware protection, but you can also buy extra antivirus defense separately.
In the era of generative AI, antivirus protection is even more critical. Threateners could use AI models in attack, or compromised data could poison the model if used for training.
“When it is malicious content, the AI agent that you are trying to train will also learn how to use malicious content,” said Ravi Srinivasan, CEO of data protection company Votiro, in an E email to TechPublic.
6. Use multifactor authentication
A reliable way to protect your data is to use multifactor approval on devices connected to the business network. With MFA, users enter a password and a one -time password sent to another device to access. In this way, the user needs at least two devices or “factors” to log into the system.
MFA acts as an additional layer of security for your data and becomes an important part of cybersecurity protocols for businesses. Without using MFA, your data remains vulnerable to unauthorized access due to lost devices or stolen credentials.
“Even if an organization goes password,” Srinivasan said, “You still want, external users, external third -party contractors and service providers who still get access to your services using passwords by default.”
Therefore, he said, technology leaders should think of MFA as part of the solution to an access problem. Whatever way your organization uses to secure its accounts, having access and identity control of some kind in place is important.
SEE: Here’s all what managers need to know about multifactor approval.
7. Use a public key infrastructure
A public key infrastructure is a system for managing public/private key couples and digital certificates. Since keys and certificates are issued by a trusted third party (ie a certification authority, either an internal one is installed on a certificate server on your network or a public), certificate -based security is stronger.
You can protect the data you want to share with someone else by encrypting them with the public key to its intended recipient, which is available to anyone. The only person who can decrypt it is the proprietor of the private key that corresponds to the public key.
8. Hide data with steganography
You can use a steganography program to hide data in other data. For example, you can hide an SMS within a .jpg graphics file or a .mp3 music file or even inside another text file; However, the latter is difficult because text files do not contain much redundant data that can be replaced with the hidden message.
Steganography does not encrypt the message, so it is often used with encryption software. The data is encrypted first and hidden in another file with the Steganography software.
Some steganographic techniques require the exchange of a secret key. Others use public and private key creepography. A popular example of steganography software is Stegomagic, a Freeware -Download that encrypts messages and hides them in .txt, .wav or .BMP files.
To hide data can be particularly important if “the organization us[es] Real personal data (from customers, patients, employees and anyone else) for testing and/or training of AI tools, ”said IEEE member Rebecca Herold.
9. Education yourself and your employees about cyber security
One of the most crucial steps to protect your data is to educate yourself and your employees about cyber security. You need to promote a skeptical mindset when interacting with any unknown site, e email or message; This includes learning the importance of following the best practice of data protection, such as not opening e emails from non -recognized senders and not clicking on suspicious attachments.
See: Take advantage of this cybersecurity training bundle from the TechPublic Academy.
10. Search professional guidance
You can choose security consultants to assess safety vulnerability in your system and how to patch them.
If you need more comprehensive protection of your data, you may want to consider hiring an administered security provider; They offer a number of security services, including 24/7 security monitoring and event management. If you also want to insure your digital assets, you may want to consider buying a cyber security insurance policy.
Generative AI brings new considerations of data protection
While the same rules apply to generative AI, the trendy new technology also introduces new concerns about data protection data protection.
“Every company that integrates AI faces an unprecedented privacy challenge: They essentially create a bridge between their company’s confidential data and public AI models,” said Oliver Friedrichs, CEO and co-founder of the cyber security company Pangea, in one E-mail to TechPublic.
When it comes to AI, correct permission is key.
“In 2025, we see a fuzzy trend where sensitive data exposure through AI primarily comes from sophisticated attacks – it happens through basic supervision of permission and data access checks,” said Rob Truesdell, Chief Product Officer at Pangea, in an E email. “Organizations discover that their AI systems inadvertently share confidential information simply because they have not defined who should have access to what.”
Srinivasan said the move to AI requires considerations of data protection beyond what organizations considered before 2022; In particular, organizations can use business data to train internal models. Organizations must be aware of data masking or anonymization to prevent private data from bubbling up in the model’s output.
“The next generation of privacy, which has passed on data sharing technologies, such as De-identification and anonymization, is developed to tackle the Data Privacy Challenge, which generative AI has,” said IEEEE fellow Herbert Herbert Song.
Organizations have to ask, “How do you retain privacy before you train it?” Said Srinivasan.
“Companies should make thorough risk assessments to identify and mitigate potential damage associated with AI products, understand their limitations and potential abuse,” McGladrey said. “Maintaining clear documentation of AI system metrics and methodologies along with revealing known risks or restrictions on customers are crucial to transparency.”
Transparency about what generative AI can and cannot do is key, McGladrey said, like compliance with state and federal privacy mandates.