In our recent Virtual Coffee with Consulting webinar, we tackled one of the most urgent challenges facing organizations today: how to protect high-value records in an era of relentless cyber threats. From headline-making breaches to proven security frameworks, the session delivered practical strategies for safeguarding the information that matters most. Here’s what you need to know.
Why High-Value Records Are Critical
High-value records aren’t just records, they’re the lifeblood of your organization. They underpin legal compliance, operational continuity, financial stability, and even corporate history. Losing or exposing these records can trigger regulatory penalties, reputational damage, and operational chaos.
Examples include:
- Legal: Sarbanes-Oxley filings, patent applications
- Operational: Emergency response plans, just-in-time inventory systems
- Financial: Merger due diligence, customer transaction ledgers
- Intellectual: R&D logs, trade secrets, proprietary formulas
- Historical: Corporate archives, images, and artifacts
Understanding what qualifies as “high value” is the first step toward effective protection.
The Escalating Cost of Breaches
Data breaches are no longer rare. They’re routine, and their impact is staggering:
- 2,300 breaches in 2023 affected 343 million victims
- The average cost of a mega-breach in 2024 hit $375 million
Recent examples illustrate the risk:
- Tea App Leak: 72,000 selfies, IDs, and 1.1 million private messages exposed after promises of privacy were broken.
- Clorox Cyberattack: Poor authentication practices led to halted manufacturing, weeks of manual order processing, and $380 million in damages.
The takeaway? Breaches are expensive, disruptive, and often preventable.
Categorizing Security: Frameworks That Work
Not all records require the same level of protection. Security categorization ensures resources are allocated where they matter most. The process involves:
- Evaluating value and risk
- Considering regulatory requirements
- Aligning with business priorities
Leading frameworks include:
- NIST FIPS 199: Low, Moderate, High security levels
- ISO/IEC 27001: Public, Confidential, Restricted classifications
- Sector-specific standards: PCI DSS, HIPAA, HITRUST, SOC 2
These frameworks provide consistency and objectivity, helping organizations prioritize information management and security solutions.
Decision Tree for Smarter Protection
A structured approach simplifies decision-making. Ask:
- Is the information public?
- Could disclosure cause financial or reputational harm?
- Does it contain personal or regulated data?
- Is it vital for continuity or disaster recovery?
- Does it include intellectual property or trade secrets?
Answering these questions helps determine whether basic, moderate, or high-level security is appropriate.
Six Core Security Capabilities
Building resilience requires a layered defense. Focus on these essentials:
- Access Controls: From MFA and role-based access to biometric verification and real-time monitoring.
- System Hardening: Secure configurations, intrusion detection, and zero-trust architecture.
- Data Loss Prevention (DLP): Real-time alerts and automated responses to unauthorized transfers.
- Encryption: End-to-end protection using AES-256 and RSA standards, plus secure key management.
- Electronic Vaults: Tamper-proof, encrypted storage with geographic redundancy and audit trails.
- Disaster Recovery: Tested plans, offsite backups, and clear recovery objectives (RTO/RPO).
Each capability scales from basic to advanced, depending on the sensitivity of your records.
Deploying Resources Wisely
Security budgets aren’t infinite. Align spending with risk:
- High-value records demand advanced measures like encryption, biometric access, and comprehensive DLP.
- Lower-value records can rely on basic protections without compromising efficiency.
Industry benchmarks show cybersecurity spending averages 6–13% of IT budgets, varying by sector. Strategic allocation ensures maximum protection without overspending.
Final Thoughts
Securing high-value records isn’t optional. It’s mission critical. By identifying what matters most, applying categorization frameworks, and implementing layered security capabilities, organizations can stay ahead of threats and protect their most valuable assets.
Want to learn more? Watch the full webinar or connect with our experts at Zasio Consulting. Together, we can help you build a security strategy that’s proactive, practical, and future-ready.
Disclaimer: The purpose of this post is to provide general education on information governance consulting. The statements are informational only and do not constitute legal advice. If you have specific questions regarding the application of the law to your business activities, you should seek the advice of your legal counsel.