0936211399 HOTLINE If your business is in possession of information that is classified as proprietary or confidential, limiting access to the data is crucial. Anyone who has employees that connect to the internet should have robust access control measures in place. Daniel Crowley, IBM’s X Force Red team head of research, explains that access control is a means to restrict access to certain people and under certain conditions. There are two primary components: authorization and authentication.
Authentication is the process of confirming that the person to whom you are trying to gain access to is the person they claim to be. It also includes verification a password or any other credentials that are required before granting access to a network, application, system or file.
Authorization is the process of granting access to specific areas based on roles in a business like marketing, HR, engineering and more. Role-based access control (RBAC) is one of the most widely used and effective ways to limit access. This type of access is governed by policies that define the information needed to perform specific business functions and assigns permission to the appropriate roles.
It is easier to monitor and manage any changes if you have an access control policy that is standardized. It is crucial that the policies are clearly communicated with employees to make them aware of how to handle sensitive information with care. Also, there should be an established procedure for revoking access to employees who quit the company, change their roles or are terminated.
