As we near Q4 of 2024, the scale and frequency of data breaches have reached alarming new heights. Some recent high-profile breaches serve as a stark reminder of the vulnerabilities in data management practices. With at least 1 billion records compromised this year in the USA alone, the need for robust data protection strategies has never been more critical.
These breaches underscore a crucial point: the security of data during transfer between environments can significantly impact overall data security. For organisations (especially those managing sensitive information, such as personal and financial data), the challenge of safely handling and transferring data is paramount. AT&T’s recent breaches illustrate the potential dangers of transferring full datasets without adequate safeguards, leading to severe privacy and security repercussions.
This is where Cloud Elemental’s RDS Automation can make a pivotal difference. Designed to address exactly these kinds of security challenges, RDS Automation ensures that only the necessary subsets of data are copied between environments while excluding sensitive information such as PII and passwords. By implementing this approach, you not only avoid the risks of data leaks but also streamline and secure the transfer process.
In this blog, we’ll explore how RDS Automation can help you avoid the pitfalls highlighted by recent breaches like those experienced by AT&T. We’ll discuss how our solution offers a secure, efficient way to manage data transfers, reduce exposure to data breaches, and enhance overall data security. Discover how RDS Automation can be a key part of your strategy to protect your data in an era where breaches are increasingly frequent and damaging.
How can we help prevent this?
How does RDS Automation work?
RDS Automation offers a secure solution for managing your scripts by allowing you to store them in a secrets store, encrypted by a key. This ensures that only users with specific permissions can view or edit the scripts.
These scripts, which execute the queries you define, can be run either on a scheduled basis or on-demand, triggered by events or whenever you need them. Running a script is as easy as providing the name of the script and the database it should target.
Scripts are executed in containers that provide the necessary computational power. Once the script has run and the desired data subset is extracted, the data is securely stored in a storage bucket.
RDS Automation not only exports data but also seamlessly copies it to a lower environment and imports the data subset into the target database. Throughout the process, scripts are securely stored in a secret store at both ends. The data is transferred to a storage bucket and then copied to the bucket of the destination environment.
This process is event-driven, allowing you to schedule when the RDS Automation runs. You can also trigger automation on demand by simply providing the necessary source and destination details, such as account information, database names, script names, and storage bucket names.
The data subset is exported based on the SQL query scripts specified by your DBA team. These scripts are uploaded to a secret store through a CI/CD pipeline, ensuring that only a designated group of users can make changes or additions. Afterward, the scripts undergo peer review for approval before the new version is deployed to the account.
This process enhances the security of your scripts and prevents any malicious or accidental exposure of data.
Let's recap the benefits of RDS Automation...
- Automated data export and import
- Faster data transfer
- PII data remains protected
- Script security (encryption)
- Changes/updates/additions go through approval process
- Limited script access
If your organisation could benefit from tighter database security, get in contact with Cloud Elemental today using our social buttons below.
Source: The biggest data breaches in 2024: 1 billion stolen records and rising | TechCrunch
