Your growing network-stored data is not only a headache to manage, it’s a target for data breaches. But before you can implement any measures to move files to secure locations, archive files that need to be retained, or delete files that are no longer relevant, you need to identify what you’re storing. With terabytes or even petabytes of stored unstructured data, this is a challenging objective.
Reducing the Amount of Unstructured Data
Reducing the amount of unstructured data stored on your network is beneficial in several ways. From a cost reduction standpoint alone it can reduce backup times, lower hardware and utility expenses, and other management costs. Furthermore, it can reduce your risk of exposure. Specifically, the more terabytes of data stored, the more likely that some of those files will contain sensitive information that could be at risk for being breached.
Let Your Data Owners Help
The scenario is all too common. IT is tasked with managing data, including managing data growth and storage locations, but lacks the knowledge to determine which files to move to more secure locations, which files are no longer relevant and to delete, which files to archive, permissions to change on network folders, etc. Effective data management, data cleanup, and data compliance requires cooperative input from both IT and those that know the data it is tasked with managing – the data owners.
The Right Tools for the Job
IT departments are looking for tools that identify the petabytes of stored data across the enterprise including all metadata and presents it in a way that is easy to understand. For compliance, they need to know who can access high-value targets and all folders that a specific user has access to. And because they are always strapped for time, they want a flexible, automated way to take needed action including cleaning up data, moving it, changing access permissions, and more.