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When attacks on business data grow more complex, the security features of legacy ERP applications are not able to keep up. Initially designed for easy access to data and business processes, Legacy ERP applications have created wide enforcement and security gaps that can lead to disastrous data breaches and millions lost to business policy violations. Outlined here are some approaches to meet the data security challenges successfully
Emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) are supplementing the market intelligence generated by modern ERP systems. While this business intelligence helps businesses develop their bottom line and optimize customer experience, ERP data protection also presents fresh challenges.
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4 Easy Ways To Ensure ERP Data Security
Your ERP data truly represents your business in a virtual form. The ERP system includes all of an enterprise's important information. With that in mind, your ERP data security strategy must be at least as watertight as your security strategy for your other business assets. Here are some ways on how to build a robust ERP data security strategy.
1. Define User-Access and Audit Regularly
For all datasets, every ERP user should have role-based access specified. Such access should also be divided into at least three categories: read-only, export-permitted, and complete access (including editing).
At the basic level, ensure that users log in to the ERP with protected user identifiers and strong passwords. Have new passwords needed frequently and irregularly. Via routine data audits, ERP data protection can also be maintained. Audit user accounts to validate their work duties need access to the data they are already allowed to use. Adjust access to ERP data depending on the current role if a user's access needs to change because they have taken a new position. As these may no longer be needed, do not simply build on their current access levels.
2. Monitor Data Usage and Transactions
Create queries to track the use of ERP data in search of anomalies. Start by searching for simple objectives, such as users who approve payments for themselves. Start to look for patterns, then. It may be a warning that trouble is brewing if the transaction volume of an ERP consumer rises or decreases in an irregular pattern.
3. Monitor and Protect External Transactions
ERP data security is also more of a challenge for external transactions. It includes all cloud transmissions and even those related to in-house systems. Your connections should always be safe, and you should regularly verify your protection. Consider encrypting the flow of data beyond your control. The type of devices that are linked to your ERP should also be tracked. Do these devices comply with the BYOD guidelines of your firm? It's time for a quick check.
4. Don't Do Away With The Old-Fashioned Security Methods
For hundreds of years, basic manual controls such as segregation of duties have functioned and still operate today. Transactions (financial and data transactions) should be approved by at least one person not directly involved in the transaction. Another frequent security monitoring tool employed is sequentially numbered purchase orders and sales orders. Define formats for ERP data, including social security numbers, check numbers, and part numbers, where possible. It is possible to reject data not fitting the specified format from processing.
Conclusion
There are now built-in ERP data security features in many ERP software products on the market, but they should not be considered anything more than a safety net. The understanding of your workers and the vigilance of your managers are the foundations of a successful data protection strategy. The new solutions for data protection come with a broad range of features that provide robust ERP data security. They streamline enterprises' data management efforts and also help them adhere to the required data protection law guidelines.
Role-Based Access Control: Some Best Practices
Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) is an aspect of identity and access management whereby resource access is granted to users based on their role in organizations. Implemented properly, it can help organizations ensure data security and adhere to data privacy guidelines. Listed here are some RBAC best practices.
1. Build an RBAC Strategy
Creating a plan starts with an evaluation of where you are (data, method, policy, systems), determines your ideal future state (automated RBAC-enabled access provisioning for a collection of apps and systems), and identifies the critical gaps that need to be addressed (data quality, process problems, various system-to-system authentication/authorization models). Identifying the challenges upfront makes it easier to fix them head-on before the implementation starts.
2. Establish a Framework for Governance
Organizations preparing for RBAC need to make decisions on project goals, set expectations, manage and support implementation, set performance metrics, and manage risk. To identify data and process problems and prioritize remediation efforts, the governance board should link up with the HR function.
3. Assign a User Lifecycle Owner
When HR goals do not fit with the priorities of IT, organizations will find themselves at loggerheads. When these misalignments arise, decisions that are in the best interests of the company as a whole need to be taken by a person (or individuals) who can serve as an escalation point. Note that both the HR and RBAC governance boards should have the participation of the User Lifecycle Owner.
4. Role Management
Determine who will own the technical roles and the business roles (e.g., application owner). An established set of protocols and policies needs to be in place about how positions are re-evaluated, whether and when they expire, and who retains them.
5. Start with a Top-Down Role Analysis
Discussions with business managers should be conducted during the RBAC design process in advance of building technical roles in order to record the functional access of staff and verify that each user in the position has the same core access. At this point, it is important to clean up any unnecessary exc
3 Reasons Why Organizations Should Use Data Masking
In order to minimize the excessive spread and disclosure of confidential data within an organization, data masking, often known as pseudonymization, is used. Data masking replaces real data with usable fictional data so that it can be safely used in cases where there is no requirement for actual data.
Many types of sensitive data can be shielded with data masking. For example:
Protected health information (PHI)
Personally identifiable information (PII)
Intellectual property (ITAR and EAR regulations)
Payment card information (PCI-DSS regulation)
Through the data masking solution, data values are altered while data formats remain unchanged. Data masking uses many techniques to modify confidential data, including the replacement of characters or numbers, the shuffling of characters, or the use of random data generation algorithms that have the same properties as the original data.
Here are three key reasons why enterprises should incorporate data masking in their broader data security strategy, considering the high priority need for organizations to protect their sensitive data.
1) Safeguard Non-Production Data
Although allowing confidential data to be shared/copied/used safely, masking helps you safeguard certain data sets and fulfill enforcement requirements without hindering your business operations.
If left unregulated, contractors or offshore workers may access production data in non-production environments and potentially transfer it across locations through the cloud or removable media. And at large, there may be more than one such data set. As long as the data remains available for purposes of non-production, masking will monitor the distribution of actual data that could be prone to a violation or outright theft. It also decreases the potential threat surface of your company.
2) Defend From Insider Threats
Trusted workers, developers, trainers, business analysts, who are already inside perimeter defenses, may have a necessity to access data but may not necessarily need access to actual production data. The real danger to the companies of today can potentially be from within; the extent of threat from insiders should not be underestimated. Internal issues such as errors, unintended employee acts, third-party snafus, and stolen computing devices account for a large proportion of data breaches.
Organizations release the data workers need to get their work done by masking confidential production data while reducing the possibility of a malicious, reckless, or compromised insider breach of data.
3) Comply With Regulations
Many data privacy regulations have been enacted in the past. Many more are in the offing. These laws – comprehensive in nature – require enterprises to ensure complete data security. SOX, GDPR, CCPA, etc. are a few examples of such regulations. A data masking solution helps comply with these regulations.
Two main principles are presented by the GDPR: data minimization and pseudonymization as ways to protect the privacy rights of people while allowing data controllers to use collected data for other purposes.
GDPR requires organizations to enforce data minimization, which is to gather and use data limited to what is required for a particular reason, to maintain it no longer than appropriate, and not to make it accessible to an unlimited number of individuals. In order to satisfy the data protection criteria of GDPR, data masking can also be used.
Data Exfiltration: Understanding the Basics
Data exfiltration - one of the greatest risks to data security - may lead to catastrophic consequences for enterprises. Data exfiltration is a critical business risk, and the outcomes may range from major financial losses to regulatory enforcement breaches to sensitive asset leaks. With the right security strategies, the question as to how to prevent data exfiltration gets answered.
What is Data Exfiltration?
Data exfiltration, also known as data theft or data extrusion, refers to the process of data transfer from a computer, storage device, or other electronic systems to another system where anyone who does not have permission to view it may access it.
Data exfiltration puts organizations at risk because external actors can access potentially confidential information due to it. They can exploit or manipulate this information for their benefit. Exfiltrated data can also be stored in places, such as the personal computer of an employee, where it is not intended to remain under policy regulations. In order to return the exfiltrated data to the entity to which it belongs, it may also be held for ransom by attackers who demand payment.
Data Exfiltration: Prime Suspects
Data exfiltration may be carried out with malicious intent by assailants. However, because of errors, it can also happen. An important step in securing your data is to consider all of the ways in which data exfiltration can be carried out.
The three types of individuals who are likely to exfiltrate data include:
Accidental Insiders: Owing to negligence or oversight, workers, business partners, or other stakeholders who have legitimate access to data can accidentally exfiltrate it. For example, in order to work with it at home, an employee may copy sensitive data, even though company policy forbids this practice. Or, maybe accidentally, an email is addressed to the wrong recipient with a confidential file attachment, leading to unintended data exfiltration.
Malicious Insiders: In some cases, workers purposely transfer information out of the networks where it is meant to remai
Segregation of Duties (SoD) in SAP GRC: The Basics
In any efficient Governance, Risk, and Enforcement (GRC) program, Segregation of Duties (SoD) is an essential part of fundamental controls. It requires the separation of individuals who perform various business transaction tasks
ERP systems, being a treasure trove of data, especially need to be protected. Worldwide, companies use legacy ERP systems such as SAP and PeopleSoft to handle the full spectrum of their everyday operations across business verticals.
Attribute-based access control (ABAC) is a strategy in which access rights are given to the users through the use of policies consisting of attributes that function together. In order to describe access control rules and access requests, ABAC uses attributes as the building blocks.
Identity management systems are usually made up of three main elements at the highest level: users, systems/applications, and policies. Policies describe how users communicate with various frameworks and software.
To simplify their everyday tasks, workers use different logins, including emails, financial systems, CRM applications, and other programs and systems during a typical workday. It can be overwhelming to remember
To simplify their everyday tasks, workers use different logins, including emails, financial systems, CRM applications, and other programs and systems during a typical workday. It can be overwhelming to remember
High-profile data breaches have aptly highlighted the issue of data protection in recent years. Organizations have, largely, failed to protect personal information. Governments worldwide have passed data privacy legislations
The Evolving Dynamics of Enterprise Identity Management
As the cybersecurity environment of the enterprise shifts with a plethora of emerging technologies, companies need to learn how not just to adapt and thrive but also to prosper. Enterprise users have access to hundreds of applications and resources, with many users using a multitude of them simultaneously on a daily basis. Manually provisioning diverse access levels is an almost impossible task.
Businesses are increasingly using centralized solutions that simplify enterprise identity management in order to resolve this. However, since each organization has specific features, the criteria for identity management often vary depending on their sector, how its employees function, and the systems on which they rely to operate. In other words, for your particular company, the right solution is always personalized.
SAP and Attribute-Based Access Control
Attribute-based access control (ABAC) in a standardized language uses attributes as building blocks that define rules for access control and explain access requests. Attributes are collections of marks or properties that can be used to identify all entities which need to be considered for authorization purposes.
SAP has an authorization management system that, using the ABAC feature, allows protected access to company data in SAP applicati
The Significance of Data Loss Prevention
Data loss prevention (DLP) is a collection of activities and products (data loss prevention software) that ensure that confidential or vital data from an entity remains open to approved users and is not shared with unauthorized users or available to them. And with many businesses developing their entire business model around data collection and analysis, to fit its growing importance, companies need to enforce a robust
PeopleSoft is an ERP system that incorporates human capital management (HCM), financial management, management of supplier relationships, automation of business resources, supply chain management, and modules for campus solutions. Let's get an overview of PeopleSoft HCM.
Comprehensive core and strategic HR features are provided by PeopleSoft HCM. It is intended to satisfy large organizations with diverse business criteria and is either deployed on-site or in the cloud.
The Various Types of Data Security Controls
Data security refers both to the technology and the practice of protection of critical and sensitive company and consumer data, such as personal or financial information.
Enterprises collect, process, store, and delete large volumes of data. Confidential personal information about your employees and clients and data related to financial or payment details, intellectual property is a gold mine for hackers. Data protection, which essentially refers to the processes and technologies that you can use to safeguard that information, is a key element in protecting the integrity and fiscal health of your company.
The HR and Finance software market is witnessing tough competition among various players, big and small. Among all players, PeopleSoft and Workday, both leaders in the segment, compete hard to capture the future market. The epic war between them is to win the market share and improve the features to the highest possible standards.
Onapsis recently discovered a critical vulnerability of the SAP (CVE-2020-6287 or RECON), which gives attackers complete control over vulnerable business applications. It enables hackers to gain unauthenticated access to SAP, and then create new user accounts with privileges of admin (superuser). A malicious hacker can inflict massive damages with these privileges, including stealing data, changing bank account numbers, altogether sabotaging systems, etc.
The dark web is flooded with offers to purchase access to corporate networks, according to a new "Access for Sale" study from Positive Technologies. Otherwise, the dark web is generally viewed as a place on the web where hackers purchase and sell personal information such as credit cards, login credentials, social security numbers, and other personally identifiable information (PII).
PeopleSoft is a massive, monolithic system that was launched way back in 1988. Though competing with the faster and cheaper cloud and SaaS solutions, PeopleSoft applications are being used by organizations worldwide even now.
Identity and Access Management (IAM) is about identifying and controlling the roles and privileges of individual network users and the situations in which such privileges are given (or denied) to users.
Organizations using conventional on-site ERP applications such as SAP ECC and Oracle PeopleSoft are faced with a rapidly evolving environment around data collection, storage, and use. Apart from the number of compliance regulations they need to obey, such as GDPR, CCPA, and others, they deal with critical visibility gaps
User Behavior Analytics (UBA) refers to a class of cybersecurity tools deployed on networks and other systems to analyze user behavior. In order to detect irregularities and malicious behavior, it applies advanced analytics. UBA systems are specifically meant to provide cybersecurity teams with actionable knowledge. These can be used to reveal vulnerabilities to data protection such as malicious insiders and privileged account abuses that traditional security approaches cannot see
'Data protection' refers to the preventive steps taken during the data lifecycle to safeguard data from unapproved access and data corruption. Data security is an essential aspect of businesses of every size. Data protection technologies that include tokenization, data encryption, data security solutions, and key management practices that protect data are deployed in the process.
The Security Assertion Markup Language, aka SAML, is a widely used open standard that allows authorization credentials to be transferred to service providers (SP) by identity providers (IdP). In essence, SAML implementation enables Single Sign-On, which means to log into several different websites; you can use one set of credentials. Managing one username per user is much easier than managing separate email logins, customer relationship management (CRM) applications, Active Directory, etc.
In many respects, ERP systems serve as the core of many enterprises. These applications are mainly represented by mega-vendors such as SAP, Microsoft, and Oracle, and the most important and valuable data is handled by them within organizations. They store records related to sales, finance, products, services, employee data, and trade secrets. A breach of such critical applications can lead to unintended downtime, increased compliance risk, decreased brand trust, and project delays.
Identity and access management (IAM) is a basic security component that helps ensure that users have the access they need and that unauthorized users are unable to access systems, data, and applications.
Understanding How SAML Works
Security Assertion Markup Language (aka SAML) is a widely used open standard that passes on authorization credentials from Identity Providers (IdPs) to Service Providers (SPs). It allows safe communication between applications and provides access to users with a single set of credentials
Single Sign-On (SSO) is an aspect of Identity and Access Management (IAM) that enables users to authenticate themselves with only one set of credentials – generally a set of username and password - securely with several websites and applications, by signing in only once. The website or application (that the user is trying to access) relies on a trusted third party with Single-Sign-On solutions to verify that users are actually who they say they are.
The increased provisioning of users puts additional pressure on the SAP policy management and IAM teams, considering the fact that they are already burdened with maintaining remote access to apps for people working from home
The foundations of cybersecurity of enterprises in today's digital era are based on 'identity.' The new digital perimeter, in reality, is identity. By deploying strong ongoing authentication, businesses can ensure more robust cybersecurity than ever. Yet, companies continue to struggle to deploy and retain strategies for identity and access management. This generally is the outcome of some identity and access management (IAM) oversights. Outlined here are a few of them:
Those working in the crucial field of cybersecurity are often stressed due to multiple reasons. As cybersecurity teams are generally understaffed, the workload is enormous. The very nature of the job is also extremely demanding. Solving the burnout problem in such circumstances requires enterprises to work smarter, not harder. Some approaches that companies can leverage to take the challenges head-on are outlined here.
Zero trust is a concept that is discussed much in the cybersecurity industry. Over the past couple of years, almost every organization has jumped on the zero trust bandwagon in some capacity. So what is the concept of zero trust
For Single Sign-On (SSO) and federation that enable employee and customer access to tools ranging from personalized applications to cloud-based services, traditional identity providers (IdPs) are important. They are great at doing these things by themselves, but there are trade-offs that need to be taken into account. Let's have an overview of the top 3
For digital and cloud-hosted applications, an identity provider (IdP) stores and maintains the digital identities of users. Using username-password combinations and other variables, an IdP can verify user identities, or it may simply include a list of user identities that another service provider (such as an SSO) checks.
Identity Access Management (IAM) is a system, according to Gartner, that allows the right people to access the required resources at the right time for the right reasons. Identity management services address the mission-critical need to ensure adequate access to resources across highly heterogeneous technology environments and to meet increasingly stringent requirements for compliance. Businesses that build mature Identity Access Management capabilities will reduce identity management costs and become much more agile in promoting new business initiatives.
Insider attacks are one of the most prevalent causes of data breaches worldwide, and they can also be among the most costly. Sixty-eight percent of organizations noted that insider attacks have become more common over the last 12 months, according to the 2020 Insider Threat Survey (Cybersecurity Insiders
Several ERP incidents take a long time to investigate and resolve. When the staff faces significant challenges in resolving incidents in a timely manner, it is difficult to offer exemplary customer support to the business lines.
Several data privacy laws have been enacted in many countries, and many more are in the offing. These regulations have fundamentally changed the way organizations look at data. It is well known that data is the new currency for businesses. With the coming into force of CCPA and GDPR
For organizations worldwide, providing mobile access to PeopleSoft ERP transactions and data has become one of the key objectives. And it has become more of a requirement, considering the present COVID-19 pandemic scenario, to maintain business continuity without any hindrance.
Identity forms the foundation of cybersecurity for businesses. In fact, identity is the new digital perimeter. Companies can enforce better cybersecurity than ever through strong continuous authentication.
With ever-increasing data breach instances, ensuring data protection has assumed vital importance in today's digital era. The value of securing confidential data will continue to form and alter the security strategies' framework across organizations. This will undoubtedly result in an increased emphasis on access controls, visibility solutions, and investments in data-centric ERP security. Businesses will find the expense of data breaches too high with many comprehensive data protection laws in the offing. Enterprises should invest in strategic solutions to address emerging threats to data security.
Organizations that use traditional on-site ERP applications such as SAP ECC and Oracle PeopleSoft face a rapidly transforming data collection, storage, and use environment. They deal with critical visibility gaps, particularly at a fine-grained level, related to understanding the access & use of ERP data. Apart from this,
One of the top trending facets of the cybersecurity strategy of companies is migration to the cloud. According to Forrester Research, almost three-quarters of organizations are running a hybrid and/or multi-cloud approach today
There's more of everything in today's digital age. More cloud-based applications, more devices, more resources, and more users. In a recent survey, 94% of Chief Information Officers agreed that the technology stack, with more applications, data, devices, and transactions, would be more complicated in the future
The proliferation of digital access has resulted in a world more connected than ever before. Today's users - customers and staff - have the freedom to communicate with technology on their own terms with the availability of technology, devices, and global access points. Consequently,
There have been, in the recent past, several instances of data breaches wherein human error caused company information to be compromised. Human error is the reason behind 52 percent of security breaches, according to a new survey.
2020 has been an unusual year riddled with unrest and uncertainty. Cyberattacks have been growing exponentially during this year. Reports of Denial-of-Service, phishing, and ransomware attacks appear to be everywhere. Some techniques to protect you and your company are outlined here.
2020 has been an unusual year riddled with unrest and uncertainty. Cyberattacks have been growing exponentially during this year. Reports of Denial-of-Service, phishing, and ransomware attacks appear to be everywhere. Some techniques to protect you and your company are outlined here.
2020 has been an unusual year riddled with unrest and uncertainty. Cyberattacks have been growing exponentially during this year. Reports of Denial-of-Service, phishing, and ransomware attacks appear to be everywhere. Some techniques to protect you and your company are outlined here.
Many security experts have moved from a stance of prevention to detection in today's IT environment, where device compromises are almost a regular occurrence. Instead of constructing higher walls in hopes of keeping them out, CISO's are more focused on using techniques to locate the attackers inside their walls.
As part of organizational security assessments, application-level vulnerability testing typically requires an evaluation of the application's capacity to facilitate the segregation of duties. Specifically, tests are guided by regulatory criteria or enforcement, such as PCI-DSS, GDPR, HIPAA, or SOX.
In general, people do not want to retain complicated passwords; they seem tedious. It is indeed challenging to remember so many different passwords for numerous accounts that every user has. The few whose identities have been stolen in the past understand the significance of privacy and protection
Organizations that use SAP ECC, PeopleSoft, S/4HANA, and Oracle EBS are likely to face additional compliance issues due to the inherent limitations of these legacy ERP systems. Let's look at a few approaches to strengthen the ERP systems to boost CCPA compliance and develop capabilities to prepare for the uncertainty concerning data privacy.
There has been quite an upsurge in instances of phishing attacks during the past few months. Cybercriminals, exploiting people's COVID-19 fears, are engaging in phishing and social engineering aimed at stealing user credentials to business applications and VPNs.
Ultimately, the credentials used for authentication are the network perimeter of an organization. This puts companies in a challenging position - they can limit employee access to these programs and risk negative impacts on efficiency and business continuity, or they can hope that nothing terrible happens. Many prefer the latter, and worldwide, the consequences are being felt.
ABAC vs. RBAC: A Comparison
In organizations, users of the network must be authenticated and authorized before accessing the system. This is especially the case for parts of the system capable of contributing to security breaches. Access control is a way of ensuring that users are who they say they are and that they have adequate access to company data. There are two key methods of controlling access for systems — role-based access control (RBAC) and attribute-based access control (ABAC)
In identity and access management (IAM), Attribute-Based Access Control (ABAC) and Role-Based Access Control (RBAC)are two types of authentication process control and SAP user authorization. Over the years, due to the rising complexity of access rules and the exponential number of staff accessing useful ERP data remotely, SAP's traditional RBAC approach has reached its limits
With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing organizations worldwide to opt for remote work, not only do security teams face the universal obstacles posed by this crisis, but they also need to resolve particular hurdles, such as securing newly remote staff and avoiding malicious attacks against remote users. Here are the top security threats that teams must face, as well as best practices in technology to keep users and business data secure:
Security breaches are widespread today, frequently impacting organizations and users around the world adversely. Knowing the underlying incidents and injuries that cause these violations not only allows us to understand how they occur but also provides valuable knowledge to tackle this increasing danger
The point-to-point integration approach prevalent in most companies lacks versatility and does not handle changes vital to the success of organizations. Organizations, therefore, need to devise a plan for integration and ensure its use through data, devices, and systems. The introduction of centralized integration through an independent platform meets all enterprise integration needs.
The increased user provisioning puts additional strain on the teams handling SAP policy management and IAM, which are already burdened with maintaining remote access to applications for people working from home.