Data sharing security breaches cost businesses an average of $4.45 million per incident in 2023 — a figure expected to rise significantly by 2025. As organizations increasingly exchange sensitive information across platforms, departments, and third parties, the security risks grow exponentially. Consequently, robust protection mechanisms are no longer optional but essential for operational continuity and customer trust.
The threat landscape has evolved dramatically in recent years. Sophisticated ransomware attacks, unauthorized access, and compliance violations now target shared data specifically. In fact, nearly 60% of data breaches in 2024 involved information being intercepted during sharing processes. Therefore, organizations must implement advanced security features that address these emerging vulnerabilities.
This guide examines the critical security components your data sharing solution like ideals needs to implement before 2025. From encryption standards and access controls to monitoring systems and compliance frameworks, we’ll explore how these features work together to create a comprehensive security strategy that protects your most valuable asset — your data.
Understanding the Rising Risks in Data Sharing
The landscape of data security threats has evolved dramatically since 2023, creating unprecedented challenges for organizations sharing sensitive information. As we navigate through 2025, understanding these emerging risks has become essential for implementing effective protection measures.
1. Common threats in 2025
Modern cyber attackers have shifted their focus from individual endpoints to comprehensive data ecosystems. Ransomware operations have evolved significantly, now specifically targeting data repositories like warehouses, lakes, and cloud storage environments. These attacks are increasingly sophisticated, with criminals conducting extensive reconnaissance before deploying payloads to identify high-value data assets.
One particularly concerning development is the rise of double extortion tactics, where attackers not only encrypt data but also steal it before encryption, threatening to publish sensitive information unless ransom demands are met. This approach is particularly effective against organizations with robust backup strategies, as even with successful restoration, the threat of data exposure remains.
AI-powered social engineering represents another significant threat to data sharing security. Unlike traditional phishing attempts, modern attacks leverage artificial intelligence to:
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Generate contextually relevant, grammatically perfect messages
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Analyze target organizations’ communication patterns
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Create deepfake voice and video content to impersonate executives
These sophisticated attacks often bypass technological defenses by exploiting human trust, with attackers increasingly focusing on harvesting credentials for data access systems rather than immediate financial gain.
Additionally, insider threats continue to present one of the most challenging data security risks. With 31% of data breaches involving credential abuse and 68% including a non-malicious human element such as insider errors, organizations face threats from:
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Malicious insiders intentionally stealing data
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Negligent employees accidentally exposing information
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Compromised credentials allowing attackers to operate as legitimate users
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Third-party vendors with excessive system access
2. Why traditional security is no longer enough
For decades, enterprises have relied heavily on conventional security tools like firewalls, VPNs, and anti-malware software to defend their data assets. This perimeter-based defense model assumes threats originate from outside the network and that data within the perimeter is safe. However, this approach has become increasingly inadequate.
Modern threat actors use sophisticated techniques including social engineering, ransomware, zero-day exploits, and insider attacks to bypass perimeter defenses entirely. Many breaches now originate from within organizations, where traditional tools offer limited visibility or protection.
Furthermore, the rise of hybrid work models, cloud adoption, and third-party integrations has made the network perimeter increasingly porous. Sensitive data constantly moves across devices, platforms, and borders, exposing it to greater risk. As one security expert notes, “If your business thinks it can employ the old model of just protecting your company’s ‘estate,’ you’re in for a very rude awakening”.
Traditional security tools also struggle with:
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Detecting zero-day attacks and sophisticated multi-stage intrusions
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Keeping pace with attack strategies that evolve hourly
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Tracking user behavior over time to identify anomalies
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Communicating between disparate systems, creating visibility gaps
Moreover, with the introduction of global data privacy regulations such as GDPR, CCPA, and HIPAA, organizations face increasing pressure to not only prevent breaches but also prove adequate controls were in place if one occurs. Traditional security measures simply cannot meet these evolving compliance demands.
In essence, protecting the perimeter is no longer sufficient—organizations must now protect data itself, wherever it resides.
Essential Encryption Standards for Secure Data Sharing
Encryption forms the foundation of secure data sharing, acting as the primary defense against unauthorized access to sensitive information. As cyberattacks become increasingly sophisticated, implementing robust encryption standards has shifted from being a best practice to an essential security requirement.
1. End-to-end encryption explained
End-to-end encryption (E2EE) represents one of the strongest approaches to data protection, ensuring that information remains encrypted throughout its entire journey, from sender to recipient, with no intermediate points having access to decryption keys. This comprehensive security measure guarantees that only the sender and intended recipient can access the content of the files being shared.
Unlike standard encryption methods, E2EE prevents even service providers from decrypting and viewing your files. This distinction is crucial—while many platforms claim to be “encrypted,” they often retain the ability to access your data on their servers. With true E2EE, the data appears as unintelligible ciphertext to anyone without the proper decryption keys.
The technical implementation of E2EE typically involves:
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Asymmetric encryption: Utilizing public and private key pairs where the public key encrypts messages while only the matching private key can decrypt them
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Symmetric encryption: Employing a single secret key for both encryption and decryption processes
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Client-side processing: Performing encryption and decryption directly in the user’s device or browser, not on company servers
E2EE has become especially critical for organizations in finance, healthcare, and legal services that must comply with strict regulations protecting sensitive customer data. According to security researchers, when encryption keys remain secure, there have been no verifiable cases of properly encrypted data being compromised, even when the encrypted data was stolen.
2. Importance of encryption at rest and in transit
While E2EE provides complete protection across the data lifecycle, understanding its component parts—encryption at rest and in transit—is vital for implementing comprehensive security.
Encryption at rest refers to protecting data while it’s stored on physical media, databases, or cloud storage. When data is stationary, it remains vulnerable to theft, unauthorized access, or physical damage to storage devices. This type of encryption converts plaintext data into ciphertext using an encryption algorithm and a secret key, with the key typically stored separately to prevent unauthorized access.
Encryption in transit protects data as it moves between devices or across networks. This includes information transmitted over the internet, local area networks, or wide area networks. Data is most vulnerable during transmission, requiring additional security protocols. The process involves encrypting information before network transmission and using secure key exchange protocols like Transport Layer Security (TLS) to safeguard the decryption keys.
Organizations should implement both types of encryption because:
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They protect against different threat vectors—physical access versus network interception
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Each addresses specific security gaps in the data lifecycle
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Many regulations explicitly require both forms of protection
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has recently finalized post-quantum cryptography standards ready for immediate implementation. These algorithms are designed to withstand attacks from both conventional and quantum computers, providing encryption tools for general data protection and digital signatures.
To effectively secure shared data in 2025, organizations must implement encryption that meets current standards while planning for emerging threats. Properly implemented encryption renders stolen data effectively useless to attackers, making it the cornerstone of any comprehensive data sharing security strategy.
Access Control and Identity Management: Who Gets In?
Securing sensitive information requires knowing precisely who can access shared resources. Indeed, effective access control and identity management form the second line of defense after encryption, determining which users can view or modify your organization’s valuable data.
1. Role-based access control (RBAC)
Role-based access control restricts system access based on users’ roles within an organization. Instead of assigning permissions individually, RBAC allows administrators to create predefined roles with specific access privileges, then assign users to those roles. This approach simplifies permission management for data sharing platforms, especially in large enterprises with numerous employees.
For companies sharing sensitive information, RBAC provides several key advantages:
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Simplified administration: Eliminates the need to provision each user with customized permissions, streamlining authorization processes
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Principle of least privilege: Users access only what they need for their specific role, reducing potential data exposure
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Compliance support: Creates transparency regarding who can access sensitive information, helping organizations meet regulatory requirements
Nevertheless, RBAC has limitations when applied to modern data sharing environments. Role explosion—where the number of roles increases exponentially as new ones are added—frequently occurs in evolving organizations. As one study revealed, organizations implementing RBAC often need to create and maintain a separate policy for each unique access scenario, making management increasingly complex.
Attribute-based access control (ABAC) offers an alternative requiring 93% fewer policies to accomplish the same security objectives. By basing permissions on multiple dimensions including metadata about the data object, user attributes, and access purpose, ABAC provides greater flexibility for complex data sharing scenarios.
2. Multi-factor authentication (MFA) for shared data
Multi-factor authentication adds a crucial security layer for shared data environments, requiring users to verify their identity through multiple verification methods. For sensitive data sharing, this typically includes something you know (password), something you have (mobile device), and sometimes something you are (biometric).
MFA dramatically enhances security for shared accounts without sacrificing convenience. Even if a password is compromised, attackers still need additional factors to gain entry. This protection is particularly valuable for high-value shared resources like financial services, company social media accounts, or shared cloud storage.
Organizations implementing MFA for shared data access gain several benefits:
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Clear audit trails: MFA systems typically log which specific users accessed shared accounts and when, creating accountability
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Protection against credential stuffing: Even if shared credentials are compromised in one system, MFA prevents easy account takeover elsewhere
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Reduced casual credential sharing: With MFA barriers, users are less likely to informally share access
Security experts recommend implementing stronger MFA options like FIDO2 security keys, biometrics, or authenticator apps rather than SMS-based codes for maximum protection. Furthermore, implementing risk-based authentication that adjusts requirements based on factors like device, location, and user behavior further enhances security.
Data Loss Prevention and Monitoring: Keeping an Eye on Your Data
Protecting sensitive information requires more than just strong encryption and access controls—organizations must actively monitor data movement and prevent unauthorized sharing. Data Loss Prevention (DLP) solutions have evolved into essential components of any comprehensive security strategy for organizations that regularly exchange information.
1. How DLP tools prevent leaks
DLP tools continuously monitor and analyze data across your entire ecosystem to identify potential security policy violations and subsequently take protective actions. These solutions work by detecting sensitive items through deep content analysis rather than simple text scanning. Modern DLP capabilities typically include:
Automation — Advanced DLP systems automatically identify, inventory, and classify sensitive data metadata, keeping pace with constantly changing information to rapidly detect potential leaks.
Analytics — Comprehensive DLP solutions analyze data in all states (in use, in transit, at rest), across all locations (endpoints, networks, cloud services, on-premises servers), and within various applications.
Context awareness — DLP tools derive context from multiple sources when examining communications, identifying suspicious patterns that might indicate data leakage. This includes recognizing confidential markers, detecting known sensitive information, and performing complex pattern matching.
Response mechanisms — Once detecting potential violations, DLP can display warning notifications to users, block sharing activities, allow justified overrides, or quarantine sensitive items.
2. Real-time monitoring and alert systems
Real-time monitoring provides continuous visibility into data movement, allowing organizations to identify and address security issues as they emerge rather than after a breach occurs. This proactive approach is crucial since new data is constantly being created and shared.
Effective monitoring systems generate alerts when users perform actions that violate DLP policies. These alerts are then consolidated in dashboards where security teams can investigate, triage, and track resolution. Ultimately, this visibility helps organizations:
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Detect both known and unknown production issues instantly
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Maintain data processing pipelines without interruption
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Identify emerging patterns and trends as they develop
The continuous nature of real-time monitoring significantly enhances application security by quickly spotting challenges such as unexpected user behavior, unauthorized access attempts, and emerging cyber threats. Additionally, ongoing surveillance enables prompt action that minimizes potential losses, whether from severe threats like data breaches or seemingly minor issues like authorization errors.
Compliance and Audit Readiness: Meeting Global Standards
Meeting global compliance standards has become a cornerstone of secure data sharing strategies as regulatory frameworks continue to evolve. Organizations must navigate a complex landscape of requirements while maintaining transparent operations through comprehensive audit trails.
1. Key regulations to comply with
Generally speaking, the data sharing compliance landscape is dominated by several major regulations. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) establishes strict rules for processing personal data across the European Union, with potential penalties reaching up to 4% of annual global turnover for non-compliance. Similarly, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) set stringent standards for consumer privacy and healthcare information respectively.
Given that more than 70% of countries now have regulations protecting individuals’ data and privacy, organizations must develop cross-compliant measures to operate globally. The EU Data Act, taking effect on September 12, 2025, will further regulate industrial data access and use, requiring organizations to establish clear data-sharing terms that are fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory.
Notably, these regulations share common principles including:
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Privacy by design and default
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Comprehensive data processing records
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Prompt breach notification procedures
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Regular third-party security assessments
2. Building audit trails for transparency
Audit trails serve as chronological records of system activities, documenting who performed specific actions, when they occurred, and crucially, why they were necessary. These detailed logs provide irrefutable evidence of compliance efforts during both internal and external investigations.
In light of their importance, audit trails have become regulatory requirements for many compliance activities. They help organizations identify internal fraud by tracking user actions related to sensitive information while simultaneously detecting outside data breach attempts.
For financial organizations especially, maintaining secure audit trails is critical as they meticulously record every transaction. Healthcare providers likewise rely on audit trails to demonstrate compliance with regulations like HIPAA by tracking who accessed, modified, or shared patient information.
To maximize effectiveness, organizations should implement automated, tamper-proof audit systems that generate high-quality electronic records. Through periodic reviews, security teams can ensure logs remain complete and accurate, supporting both compliance verification and overall information security.
Conclusion
Data sharing security has fundamentally transformed from an optional feature to a business-critical necessity. Organizations must recognize that comprehensive protection requires multiple layers working together seamlessly. Throughout this guide, we’ve examined how encryption serves as the foundation, access controls determine who can interact with sensitive information, monitoring systems provide vigilance, and compliance frameworks ensure regulatory adherence.
The financial stakes remain exceptionally high. Data breaches will likely exceed the current $4.45 million average cost per incident as attackers develop increasingly sophisticated methods. Therefore, organizations must implement robust security mechanisms that address both current and emerging threats. This means deploying end-to-end encryption alongside proper access management while maintaining comprehensive audit trails.
Ultimately, effective data security depends on understanding the specific risks facing your organization. Traditional perimeter-based approaches have become inadequate against modern threats like ransomware, AI-powered social engineering, and insider attacks. Companies must instead adopt security measures that protect data throughout its entire lifecycle.
Security features should never exist in isolation. The strongest protection comes from integrated systems where encryption, access controls, monitoring tools, and compliance frameworks work together cohesively. This holistic approach not only safeguards sensitive information but also builds customer trust and ensures operational continuity.
As organizations continue exchanging data across platforms, departments, and third parties, those that implement these essential security features will position themselves for success. Though cybersecurity challenges will undoubtedly evolve, organizations that prioritize comprehensive data protection today will develop the resilience needed to thrive tomorrow.