In the age when information is one of the most precious assets, many organizations fail to estimate the scale and gravity of their threat to data protection. Recent research by Frontier Enterprise found that two out of five companies underestimate their risk exposure by more than a third. This disparity may result in penalties, reputation, and business interference.
As much as cyberattacks and compliance problems are frequently discussed in boardrooms, other potentially deadly threats lurk in the enterprise background, and generally, it is too late until they are realized. This article will define the five most commonly overlooked data protection risks, their relevance, and how B2B firms can battle them.
Misjudging Third-Party and Supply Chain Risks
Most companies put a lot of effort into protecting their infrastructure and neglect risks that can be generated by third-party vendors, partners, and supply chain providers. Third-party systems pose a disproportionate number of data breaches, since entities cannot see what happens to sensitive data when managed by outside parties.
According to the 2024 DataStealth report, third-party risk has been ranked among the greatest breach vectors. This is due to more attackers targeting smaller and less secure partners to gain access to big enterprise systems. Since regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation and California Consumer Privacy Act make a business owner liable for breaches regardless of whether a person caused them, the unwillingness to evaluate third-party security may cost a firm dearly.
A must-do for enterprises in this situation is to:
Ensure that you do your research before hiring suppliers.
Include data protection and incident response clauses in each third-party contract.
Perform periodic security audits on vendors.
Restrict the access of third parties to data that is minimally needed for the operations.
Underestimating Insider Threats
When companies think of threats, external hackers are typically the first to come to mind. However, the risk is more often and more surreptitiously posed by insiders, either inattentive employees, dissatisfied ones, or contractors who are given too many privileges.
The Frontier Enterprise survey has indicated that inside cases constitute many data security imperfections, most of which have not been identified for a long time. Accidental data mishandling, poor data hygiene with passwords, unauthorized file downloads, or malicious exfiltration of sensitive files may all lead to such a breach.
With the continued trend of hybrid work systems, employees can access company information on their personal computers and unsecured networks, which means a larger possible attack area. Lacking proper policies and monitoring, insiders can easily breach data security without intending to or even out of malice.
The things your security team can do include:
Introducing role-based access limitations to restrict data privileges.
Implementing anomaly-based user monitoring.
Consistently training the people to work on phishing, data usage, and cybersecurity hygiene.
Installing exact reporting systems for suspicious activity.
Overlooking Privacy Compliance Fatigue
Many businesses find it hard to stay abreast of the new data privacy laws frequently appearing in every market, including the General Data Protection Regulation in the EU, the California Consumer Privacy Act in the US, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act in India, and the Personal Information Protection Law in China.
In a 2024 report, 2B Advice spotted the spread of adherence management fatigue, where companies are becoming obsessed with merely meeting the bare requirements of the regulations and stop ensuring constant data protection vigilance.
This complain-and-comply doctrine invariably leads to partial data catalogs, untried breach reaction strategies, and uniform consent compliance. It not only exposes organizations to regulatory fines but also undermines their brands if people lose confidence in their data management.
Here’s what you can do:
Think of compliance as a continuous discipline and not a once-off project.
Designate protection officers or privacy groups.
Automate the process of data mapping, consent, and incident reporting.
Be an active participant in regional and sector-based privacy laws.
Ignoring Data Discovery and Shadow Data Risks
Modern businesses create and store a huge amount of data, which comes from cloud services, software-as-a-service platforms, mobile devices, and Internet of Things devices. Many IT leaders do not have a clear view of where sensitive data is located, which is often called shadow data.
Unmanaged information assets will likely lead to exposure, compromise, and other non-compliant behaviors. The DataStealth blog mentions that even well-secured organizations face risks of breaches in case important information is saved at unidentified, unmonitored places. This occurrence is particularly troublesome for regulated industries like healthcare, financial services, and logistics.
To avoid this, you can:
Implement enterprise-wide data discovery and classification tools.
Automate the identification of sensitive data across all systems and platforms.
Set policies for secure data lifecycle management, including timely deletion.
Regularly audit data inventories and shadow repositories.
Miscalculating the Impact of Reputation and Consumer Trust
Whereas the vast majority of enterprises worry about the financial and legal consequences of a data breach, they tend to underestimate the inevitable impact on customer trust and their brand image in the long term. A recent CookieYes report indicated that 70% of consumers are reluctant to provide personal information. This hesitation is particularly pronounced when companies that require the information are not perceived as easy to do business with. Last but not least, half the prospects would quit using a service in case of a data breach.
In the B2B industries, where client relationships depend on trusted partnerships and secured confidentiality, violating either of these types of alliances may lead to the termination of the partnership. This may also result in the postponement of contract renewal and regulatory agency investigation. In addition, reputational damage from mismanagement of personal or proprietary data often exceeds regulatory fines.
You can advise your teams to:
Share information freely about data protection policies and breaches with stakeholders.
Present easy-to-understand and, at the same time, convenient privacy statements and consent procedures.
Invest in active customer communications and crisis warning tactics.
Frame high-powered data governance as a competitive differentiator when discussing with clients.
The Data Risk Landscape Is Broader Than Most Enterprises Realize
The data protection environment is constantly changing, and this dynamic can affect threat actors, regulatory demands, and consumer expectations at a rate that many companies may not be able to keep up with. The study funded by Frontier Enterprise proves what many leaders in the cybersecurity industry already believe: that a relatively large percentage of enterprises are failing to accurately estimate their exposure and preparation.
It is not enough to improve firewalls and access control more tightly. The solution is an enterprise-wide view on protecting data that considers long-overlooked risks, such as third-party threats, insiders, and shadow data. It is also essential to foster an organizational culture that promotes security awareness and regulatory alertness at all levels.
Final Thoughts
If your teams are unprepared to deal with underrated risks in the hyper-connected economy, it might cost your business much more than fines. Do not risk future growth; instead, start implementing the next steps to boost security awareness:
Carry out a third-party assessment to audit your current exposure to data protection risks.
Consider insider threats and shadow data vulnerabilities.
Where feasible, automate privacy and compliance.
Keep instructing employees on the best practices of data governance.
In B2B enterprises, data protection is an adherence requirement and a source of business continuity and customer trust. These five underestimated risks can be used as a guideline so that organizations can better prepare themselves to combat modern printers, meet changing regulatory requirements, and, of course, remain a competitive force in an ever-growing privacy-conscious market.
