It's the Information, Stupid

Over the past several years there have been changes in the business environment, causing fundamental alterations in how security organizations operate to protect the enterprises for which they have responsibility.

An evolution in the nature, methods, and motivation behind the perpetration of security breaches [Timeline: 4 Years of Data Breaches] has had a profound impact on the importance of protecting data and information. This is a shift from the traditional approach of protecting the infrastructure on which the data resides.

The focus of this article is to identify ways that information in the enterprise can be inappropriately removed and a framework for how to mitigate these risks and protect your organization from the potential litigation, fines, and sheer embarrassment that can follow from such an event. [See also: Seven Practical Ideas for Security Awareness]

The unprecedented transformation in the nature and consequences of security breaches is causing a shift in the way security practitioners specifically and business leaders in general must think about the security of information within the enterprise.

The job of a security professional over the past few years has undergone a metamorphosis in response [ Security Geeks: From Isolation to Rock Stars]. This metamorphosis has taken the security practitioner from a completely interrupt-driven existence of a firefighter constantly on the alert for an attack, to more of a detective engaged in constant investigation to understand whether or not there has been significant data loss from a silent assailant, one whose biggest goal next to gaining that information is keeping anonymity intact.

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