Assessing Your Data Landscape
Start by understanding what data your organization collects, stores, and processes. Categorize data by sensitivity level—customer data, financial records, intellectual property, and employee information may require different protection levels.
Regulatory requirements also matter. Bangladesh businesses handling certain data types may need to comply with specific protection standards. Understanding these requirements is foundational to effective data protection.
Backup and Disaster Recovery
Regular backups are your safety net against data loss from hardware failures, ransomware, or accidental deletion. Implement the 3-2-1 backup rule: three copies of data, on two different media types, with one copy offsite.
Test your disaster recovery procedures regularly. A backup is only valuable if you can actually restore from it when needed.
Access Control and Authentication
Limit who can access sensitive data. Use strong authentication methods including passwords, multi-factor authentication, and biometric controls. Implement least-privilege access—users should only access data necessary for their job.
Regularly audit access logs to detect unauthorized access attempts.
Incident Response and Recovery
Despite best efforts, incidents happen. Have an incident response plan that defines roles, communication procedures, and recovery steps. Regular tabletop exercises help ensure your team can execute the plan effectively under pressure.
Rapid response to data breaches minimizes damage and helps maintain customer trust.