Securing Data Flows into Your Cloud Data Warehouse

The Expanding Data Perimeter

Traditionally, data security focused on protecting data at rest within the confines of your on-premise data center. The cloud era has blurred these lines. Data now flows through complex pipelines, often traversing multiple services and third-party vendors. This expanded data perimeter creates new vulnerabilities:

• Uncontrolled Data Sharing: Data loaded into cloud data warehouses is often accessed by various internal teams and potentially shared with external partners. Without clear visibility and control, sensitive information can inadvertently end up in the wrong hands.
• Third-Party Risk: ETL tools and cloud data warehouses rely on APIs and integrations with other services. Each connection point represents a potential risk. Are these third parties compliant with data privacy regulations like GDPR and CCPA? Do they have adequate security measures in place?
• Data Residency and Sovereignty: Cloud data warehouses might store data in different geographic locations. This raises concerns about data residency and compliance with regulations that restrict cross-border data transfers.
• Shadow Data Flows: It's easy for data to be copied, moved, and transformed without proper documentation or oversight. These "shadow data flows" can create compliance gaps and make it difficult to track sensitive information.

It’s crucial to ensure that the data loaded into warehouses and analytics tools is scanned for sensitive information and redacted or redirected accordingly. 

From Cloud to ETL to Warehouse

The ETL process is the ideal time to implement governance. Data extracted from various sources is transformed and then loaded into the data warehouse. ETLs primarily retrieve data from the cloud via native connections, but they then input data into warehouses via REST API connections.

This is where Riscosity comes in. We focus on securing data in motion. By monitoring the data flowing from your ETL tool into platforms like Snowflake, Riscosity provides a powerful layer of data governance. Here's how:

• Granular Control: Riscosity allows you to set precise restrictions on access to sensitive information. You can define rules that prevent certain data elements from being shared with specific endpoints, ensuring compliance with data minimization principles and privacy regulations. You can also set geographic restrictions – a crucial tool for GDPR, CCPA, etc. No engineering support is needed to implement these rules.
• Real-time Monitoring: Riscosity monitors data flows in real time, alerting you to any unauthorized data sharing or suspicious activity. This allows you to take immediate action against potential data breaches and maintain compliance.
• Comprehensive Audit Trail: Riscosity maintains a detailed audit trail of all data flows, providing evidence of your data governance efforts. This is crucial for demonstrating compliance with regulations and responding to data subject requests.

Protecting Data in Use

The challenge doesn't end once the data is in the warehouse. It's essential to maintain control over how the data is used. Riscosity extends its monitoring and control capabilities to the data warehouse environment, allowing you to track and secure data as it's queried, analyzed, and shared.

A Proactive Approach to Data Governance

Data privacy is not a one-time project; it's an ongoing process. By implementing a data flow security platform like Riscosity, CDOs and their teams can take a proactive approach to data governance. We empower you to:

• Minimize Risk: Reduce the risk of data breaches and compliance violations.
• Ensure Compliance: Meet the requirements of GDPR, state level privacy laws, and other data privacy regulations.
• Build Trust: Demonstrate to customers and stakeholders that you are committed to protecting their data.

In the cloud era, data is the lifeblood of business. But with that power comes great responsibility. By securing the flow of data into your cloud data warehouse, you can unlock the full potential of your data while protecting the privacy of your customers.