Slack is a digital collaborative ecosystem for work, designed to exchange messages, files and any other work-related information. In recent news, a high-profile hack was reported against Uber. Shockingly the initial entry point of the hack was through Slack where a user’s password was obtained through malware. In spite of Uber’s security mechanisms in place such as Multi-Factor Authentication, such an event occurred.
This brings us to the topic that we’re discussing today which is, how to protect the Slack workspace from different kinds of Risks. We’ve discussed three major kinds of risks and what would be the possible ways to mitigate these errors.
Data Security Risks
Data security threats could lead to data leak, identity theft, cyber security attacks and many other incidents that put “Data” at risk. Here are a few data security risks that you should consider for your Slack space.
PII Data Leak
PII (Personal Identifiable Information) is any representation of information that permits the identity of an individual to whom the information applies to be reasonably inferred by either direct or indirect means.
Phishing and Other Social Engineering Attacks
In a social engineering attack, an attacker uses human interaction (social skills) to obtain or compromise information about an organization or its computer systems. Phishing is a form of social engineering. Phishing attacks use email or malicious websites to solicit personal information by posing as a trustworthy organization.
Insider Threats
The insider threat has many faces. It can be a disgruntled employee, an unwitting one or even a cybercriminal who has gained access to legitimate credentials. The tricky thing is, within the Slack workspace, it can be hard to tell who is who – and what data they’re accessing.
Compliance Risks
Compliance risk is an organization’s potential exposure to legal penalties, monetary fines, reputation damages and material loss, caused by a failure to act in accordance with government laws, industry regulations, or prescribed best practices. The most common compliance risks include
- Disclosure of PHI
- Breach of Payment Card Data
- Infringement of Personal Data Privacy Rights
- Lack of Disaster Preparedness
Technical Risks
The risk associated with the evolution of the design and the production of the product affects the level of performance necessary to meet the stakeholder expectations and technical requirements.
Solutions to Mitigate the Risks
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Data loss prevention (DLP) software detects potential data breaches/data ex-filtration transmissions and prevents them by monitoring, detecting and blocking sensitive data.
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Monitoring the network traffic and devices for infringement. Could use tools like DataDog, Auvik, etc.
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Enabling SSO - Single sign-on (SSO) is an authentication method that enables users to securely authenticate with multiple applications and websites by using just one set of credentials.
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Generating audit reports for compliance and regulatory teams. Also conducting training so that the employees are aware of the latest developments.