Data Management
The Dangers of Data Hoarding
Understand the risks of data hoarding and why organizations must implement proper data retention and erasure policies.
What is Data Hoarding?
The practice of storing data in huge volumes for an indefinite period of time is known as data hoarding. Businesses often collect voluminous data to extract customer insight or business value from it in the future. However, the data may not be optimally used due to a lack of adequate resources, tools, skills, or a clear strategy.
This results in an excessive accumulation of redundant and unnecessary data, which can create data security challenges. If this data is compromised, it can have a detrimental impact on the business, turning data from an asset into a liability.
Dangers of Data Hoarding
Increased Risk of Data Breach
Unstructured, dark data in large volumes that is left unattended becomes more vulnerable to data breach risks. The more data an organization hoards, the more targets it provides for cybercriminals. According to IBM, the average total cost of a data breach on a global scale is US $4.45 million.
Insider Threats
Employees who accumulate excessive amounts of data without purpose endanger sensitive information. Unauthorized access and usage of this information compromises confidentiality, integrity, and availability, increasing the chances of data getting lost or breached.
Backup Redundancy
Over-accumulation of data at different locations (on a device or in the cloud) heightens the possibility of data leakage. According to the Veeam 2023 Ransomware Trends report, "Data stored in backups is the most common target for ransomware attackers."
Compliance and Legal Risk
Storing data beyond the retention period it was collected for, without a clear purpose, or after the purpose has been fulfilled, is a violation of data privacy regulations like CCPA, EU-GDPR, and UK-GDPR. Supervisory authorities have the power to send notices, suspend business activities, and impose penalties.
Increased Total Cost of Ownership
As the volume of collected data increases, so does the cost of storage, irrespective of the lack of direct contribution to organizational objectives. This includes costs for physical space, energy consumption, cooling, and server maintenance.
How to Prevent Data Hoarding
Data Retention Policies
Implement clear policies defining how long data should be retained
Automated Erasure
Use automated data erasure tools to delete data after retention period
Regular Audits
Conduct regular data audits to identify and remove redundant data
Data Minimization
Collect only the data necessary for specific business purposes
Conclusion
Data hoarding poses significant risks including increased data breach vulnerability, compliance violations, and higher operational costs. Organizations must implement proper data retention policies and use certified data erasure solutions to eliminate redundant data and protect sensitive information.
Stop Data Hoarding with D-Secure
Implement automated data erasure policies to eliminate redundant data and reduce security risks.
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