80% of IT leaders believe Shadow IT will be a massive issue by 2025
Unsanctioned software and hardware can bring in serious security and compliance issues for an organization.
According to a survey by Entrust DataCard, 80% of IT professionals believe that shadow IT will be a major threat for organizations by 2025. Though shadow IT has been an issue for the past decade, IT leaders must understand its drivers.
Dmitry Dontov writes for IT ProPortal on the key drivers of Shadow IT and how organizations can have control over it.
Here is what he says:
Shadow apps available for free with just a few clicks.
Remote work has made the IT control and visibility over SaaS applications scarce.
Cloud to cloud file transfer, file sharing, and online file storage are more convenient for employees in shadow apps.
Though they use these apps to propel productivity, they leave out the vulnerabilities and threats it brings to your company.
Employees assume security is in-built in the cloud, leaving the unsanctioned storage like the Amazon S3 bucket open, exposing all your data.
Unapproved hardware can also be used to store and access data, like employees using their personal devices to access their work-related data.
Installing a malicious application in the mobile device and giving access to a personal cloud environment with business data can become a major data leak concern.
Employees can do cloud-to-cloud data transfer to transfer their company data to a personal Google Drive and blackmail or cause data leaks in the future.
The increase in uncontrolled data flows leads to serious compliance issues.
You must establish heightened cloud visibility and control to reduce shadow IT.
Incorporate AI-enabled cloud security platform, Machine learning, and solutions that enable you to maintain tight control over approved and actively permitted applications.
You need to proactively establish the capabilities necessary to monitor and control cloud services, third-party applications, and user activities.
What We Think -
IT stakeholders have to proactively invest in tools and processes to mitigate the negative impact of Shadow IT in their organizations. SaaS Management Platforms (SMPs) are emerging as a favorite tool among IT leaders to tackle Shadow IT. In fact, our studies show that 17% of IT leaders have already deployed SMPs in their organization, and 32% of them plan on doing so in the next 12 months.
You can read the full article here.