Written by:
Anne Gotay Protecting your organizational data is about more than just addressing advanced threats. It is also about ensuring that any sensitive information or data collected isn’t overexposed. Verizon has shown that the human element is responsible for 82% of breaches. As organizations embrace more cloud technologies, keeping track of what data is stored in the cloud environment and the access controls applied to all data subjects is crucial for reducing the risk of data breaches or data exposure.
Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) refers to the process of identifying, assessing, and managing an organization’s overall security posture to protect its data from unauthorized access, theft, or breaches. It involves evaluating the effectiveness of the security controls and policies in place, identifying vulnerabilities and risks, and implementing appropriate measures to mitigate those risks.
In this blog post Sotero explores the Gartner Hype Cycle and provides our inputs on emerging technologies like DSPM. We’ll also dive into the basics of DSPM, how it protects businesses from cyber threats, and where it sits on the 2022 Hype Cycle for Data Security. Read on to learn more about this exciting emerging technology and how it can help protect your organization’s sensitive data.
DSPM The Basics
DSPM is one of the emerging technology on the 2022 Gartner Hype Cycle for Data Security*. DSPM is a process used by organizations to continuously monitor and manage their data security posture. This technology involves a range of activities, including identifying, assessing, and prioritizing data security risks, implementing controls to mitigate those risks, and measuring the effectiveness of those controls.
By taking a proactive approach to data security, organizations can better protect their sensitive data, mitigating the risk of cyberattacks. DSPM technology helps organizations achieve this by providing real-time insights into their data security posture and enabling them to take a more data-driven approach to data privacy and security strategies.
How DSPM Protects Business
The primary goal of DSPM is to ensure that the organization’s security posture is in compliance with the relevant regulatory standards, such as HIPAA and GDPR, and industry best practices, like PCI-DSS, as well as the organization’s own security policies. It involves continuous monitoring and assessing the organization’s data security posture, identifying and remediating potential vulnerabilities and risks, and ensuring that its data is protected against internal and external threats.
DSPM is essential for protecting businesses from cyber threats. It provides real-time visibility into an organization’s data security posture, identifying potential vulnerabilities and threats. Using this information, it offers remediation recommendations. DSPM tools improve efficiency by automating and streamlining data security management processes by collecting and analyzing data from multiple sources, such as firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and vulnerability scanners.
The ultimate goal of DSPM is to ensure that an organization’s data security posture is always aligned with its risk tolerance and regulatory requirements. This requires a continuous improvement process that adapts to new threats and vulnerabilities as they emerge. With DSPM technology, organizations achieve this goal by monitoring and managing their data security posture in real-time, implementing appropriate controls to mitigate risks, and measuring the effectiveness of those controls. This helps businesses avoid potential threats and protect their data from unauthorized access, theft, or loss.
What Do the Hype Cycle Phases Mean
The Hype Cycle is divided into several phases, each representing a different stage in the technology’s development and adoption According to Gartner, “each Hype Cycle drills down into the five key phases of a technology’s life cycle”**. Although some of these phases may sound negative, they are an overall assessment of the technology’s maturity. The phases of the hype cycle include:
- Innovation Trigger:
- According to Gartner, “A potential technology breakthrough kicks things off. Early proof-of-concept stories and media interest trigger significant publicity. Often no usable products exist and commercial viability is unproven.”
- Peak of Inflated Expectations:
- According to Gartner: “Early publicity produces a number of success stories — often accompanied by scores of failures. Some companies take action; many do not.”
- Trough of Disillusionment:
- According to Gartner: “Interest wanes as experiments and implementations fail to deliver. Producers of the technology shake out or fail. Investments continue only if the surviving providers improve their products to the satisfaction of early adopters.”
- Slope of Enlightenment:
- According to Gartner: “More instances of how the technology can benefit the enterprise start to crystallize and become more widely understood. Second- and third-generation products appear from technology providers. More enterprises fund pilots; conservative companies remain cautious.”
- Plateau of Productivity
- According to Gartner: “Mainstream adoption starts to take off. Criteria for assessing provider viability are more clearly defined. The technology’s broad market applicability and relevance are clearly paying off.“
How We Think Businesses Use the Hype Cycle
In our opinion, the Hype Cycle is a valuable tool for businesses to determine the maturity level of emerging technologies and assess whether they are ready for adoption. Organizations may have different risk appetites for innovation and technology adoption depending on their goals and objectives. Some businesses may prefer to remain cutting-edge and innovative, embracing new technologies early on to gain a competitive advantage and influence the direction of the technology. They are willing to deal with potential operational hiccups because the benefits of being an early adopter outweigh it. In contrast, others may prefer to wait until a technology has matured and proven its value, seeking mature solutions that can be trusted to deliver a return on Investment.
Regardless of their approach, we think the Hype Cycle report provides valuable insights for both organizations. It clearly explains where technology is on the maturity curve, including how long it is expected to take to reach a full maturity level. In our opinion, this information helps businesses decide when and how to adopt new technologies, whether to be early adopters or wait for more mature solutions.
Where DSPM Sits in the Hype Cycle
DSPM is a relatively new concept and we think it is quickly gaining recognition as a legitimate security solution. In the 2022 Gartner Hype Cycle for Data security, DSPM is within the Innovation Trigger phase with a benefit rating as Transformational and is predicted to reach the Plateau of Productivity within 5-10 years. As a technology in its early stages, the definition of DSPM and its core functionality are still being refined. However, this emerging technology’s buzz and excitement work to generate interest and drive investment and research. Despite the name, DSPM has yet to receive significant negativity, a testament to its potential for addressing data security and privacy concerns. Contact Sotero for more information about how cutting-edge data protection technology strengthens your DSPM efforts.
*Gartner, Hype Cycle for Data Security, August 4, 2022.
**Gartner Hype Cycle (https://www.gartner.com/en/research/methodologies/gartner-hype-cycle).
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