Safeguarding Cloud Data: The Essential Role of DLP in CASBs

Organizations continue to adopt SaaS applications at an accelerated pace. Gartner expects cloud app spending to eclipse $295 billion in 2025, which represents a nearly 20% growth rate over 2024.

As businesses increasingly depend on SaaS applications to handle critical data, safeguarding sensitive information is more crucial than ever. Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASBs) play a pivotal role by providing advanced Data Loss Prevention (DLP) capabilities. 

DLP within CASBs empowers organizations to monitor, detect and block unauthorized access or sharing of sensitive data—ensuring compliance with industry regulations and protecting against breaches.

Key Features of DLP in CASBs

1. Comprehensive Data Visibility: CASBs offer detailed insights into how data moves within SaaS environments, helping IT teams track where sensitive information is stored, who is accessing it and how it is being used. This foundation is vital for preventing data loss.
2. Contextual Data Classification: CASBs classify data based on its sensitivity—such as “confidential” or “public”—enabling admins to set policies that ensure sensitive data is only shared with authorized users.
3. Policy Enforcement: Administrators can implement specific DLP policies based on SaaS applications, user roles or data types to prevent accidental or malicious sharing of critical information like financial records or customer data.
4. Data Encryption: To protect data both in transit and at rest, CASBs provide encryption capabilities, ensuring that intercepted data cannot be accessed by unauthorized users without proper decryption keys.
5. Compliance Management: CASBs help organizations comply with regulatory standards like GDPR, HIPAA, and PCI DSS by preventing unauthorized access to personal or financial data.

Why DLP in CASBs is Essential for Businesses

Forcepoint ONE CASB allows customers to secure data in use with 190+ pre-defined data security policies and customized controls to help streamline compliance. DLP in CASB helps by: 

• Preventing Insider Threats: DLP-enabled CASBs mitigate insider threats by detecting and responding to improper sharing of sensitive data, whether accidental or malicious.
• Safeguarding Intellectual Property: DLP prevents unauthorized access to or sharing of intellectual property stored in SaaS applications, ensuring businesses protect their proprietary information.
• Mitigating Data Breach Risks: CASBs provide continuous monitoring and real-time threat detection, minimizing the risk of data breaches, and protecting organizations from financial and reputational damage.

In today’s cloud-driven landscape, DLP in CASBs helps secure sensitive data while also ensuring compliance. CASBs deliver enhanced visibility, enforce granular policies and provide robust protection, which makes them essential for safeguarding valuable business data. As cloud adoption grows, integrating DLP capabilities in CASB solutions goes even further to reduce data breach risks, helping businesses thrive in today’s digital age.