DLP (Data Loss Prevention) monitors your digital assets across several platforms and provides analysis of how it’s used. DLP is increasingly more important for IT departments since network architecture frequently extends across the cloud. A DLP solution can reduce the chance of data leaks or breaches and can keep your corporate environment more secure. Luckily, Microsoft included a DLP system in Exchange 2016 to help you manage email security.
Why Is DLP Important to You?
With any network environment, the risk of data loss and theft is imminent. Hackers want your data, and no matter your business size, it’s a target. Analyzing and assigning risk isn’t enough to protect your digital assets. You must be proactive, and this is why DLP is important.
As the business grows, assets can also be lost or forgotten. Employees store data in unauthorized locations, and even legacy systems are forgotten during hardware upgrades. A good DLP system can help IT professionals discover hidden assets across the cloud or even mobile devices.
Exchange is the backbone for communication within the organization that is a focal point for security and disaster recovery. Any IT professional understands the risk involved with secure email communication especially when inboxes are open to the Internet. Employees can send files with classified content, or they can be the victim of a phishing attack, which exposes corporate assets to unauthorized access.
DLP in Exchange focuses on data recovery when storage fails and preventative measures against phishing and suspicious senders. It actively protects from malicious content entering the internal network, and it provides a way for administrators to quickly recover data should any storage or server system fail. Since Exchange integrates with SharePoint, you can also take advantage of DLP features across several applications.
DLP in Exchange has several features that protect the business from its biggest risk – the users. Administrators can set filters and policies for messages. It includes templates that the administrator can edit and build on to make new templates and filters. Block certain types of sensitive data, and use its reporting and analysis services to review the way email is used within the organization.
If your corporation uses Outlook, the client is also DLP-aware and can be used in conjunction with Exchange for better protection.
How to Use DLP?
Since Microsoft provides you with several DLP templates, it’s easy to set up some quick filters that block the major cyber threats.
The first step is to log in to the Exchange Admin Center and choose “Compliance Management” in the left panel.
As we mentioned, Exchange has a number of policy templates that help reduce your overall management time when setting up security filters. You can test a policy for a time before you enforce it to give you better analysis on its effect on the network.
When you choose your policy filter, click the “Enforce” check box on the right side, and then click “Yes” to confirm your changes. If you review your policy rules, you can change the tips and warnings sent to users when they work with sensitive information.
Of course, you can edit your policies as you see fit, but as you can see managing policies is only a quick edit and save when working with Exchange DLP. DLP is quick to set up, but it’s a critical part of data protection that helps manage email security.
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