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When it comes to file sharing and storage, the two most common solutions are on-premises and cloud-based services and infrastructure. Today, 60% of all corporate data resides in the cloud (compared to just 30% in 2015).

As cloud adoption accelerates, 54% of enterprises continue to rely on on-premises infrastructure to store and share files. So how do companies decide between the cloud, on-premises servers, or even a hybrid of both? The right solution depends on your unique business needs, as well as how you handle data security.

In this article, we will explore reasons why you might need an on-premises file sharing solution, the downsides of such solutions, and how to enhance file sharing security with WinZip® Enterprise.

Why use on-premises file sharing and storage?

On-premises data centers rely on the infrastructure at your company’s physical location to store and share files. These in-house, on-site resources are owned by the organization and available to its internal end users through a local network.

Purchasing, installing, and maintaining equipment falls to your internal IT department. This also includes creating a security system to protect your physical assets and network. Because the data center is physically connected to the local network, IT teams can monitor and ensure that only approved users and devices can access and share files.

Here are a few reasons why a business might consider on-premises file sharing solutions:

• Offline access. Since files are shared through the corporate network, on-premises solutions do not require an internet connection. This means that slow connections and outages won’t disrupt the server’s availability.

• Security. Around half of IT decision-makers who store and share files on-premises instead of the cloud do so to protect critical data. You have complete control over security measures, including how, when, and why a user can access the network or hardware.

• Regulatory compliance. Organizations that handle sensitive data are subject to various regulatory requirements relating to how data is accessed, used, and stored. On-premises solutions can meet specific security provisions that a cloud solution might not provide.

Downsides of on-premises file sharing solutions

For all the benefits, there are disadvantages when it comes to using an on-premises solution to share and store files. They include:

• File accessibility and mobility
• Security risks
• Costs and scalability

File accessibility and mobility

One key downside, accessibility, became all too apparent in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Because on-premises data centers rely on a physical connection to the corporate network, the files are inaccessible to the distributed workforce.

When stay-at-home orders were first issued in March 2020, companies had little time to consider how to adapt the network to accommodate remote work. This significantly impacted business continuity as organizations shifted to cloud adoption in record numbers. For example:

• Initially, cyberattacks increased by 300%, in large part due to unsafe practices such as using personal devices and unsecured networks to access company files.

• Remote workers experienced connectivity issues as businesses exceeded cloud infrastructure capacities. For example, if there weren’t enough licenses for every user, some users would be unable to connect to the virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI).

• Firewall problems also hindered remote file sharing. This is because the process of remote access relies on Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) tools, which are blocked by many public networks and corporate firewalls.

Today, 55% of businesses worldwide offer some form of remote or hybrid work. To meet the needs of an evolving workforce, organizations need to enable digital access for off-premises file sharing. This typically requires a third-party solution such as VDI). VDI is a virtualization technology that delivers virtual desktops and applications over a network to end users. This enables offsite employees to access the operating system and its apps as though they were running locally.

Security risks

Security is a double-edged sword when it comes to on-premises solutions. While organizations have more control over the network and physical infrastructure, employees spend valuable working time installing updates, creating data backups, and maintaining the servers.

With a current global shortage of cybersecurity professionals, many organizations cannot adequately staff their IT teams. The 2021 Cybersecurity Workforce Study found that staff shortages have significant impacts on data security. Survey respondents attributed the following consequences to inadequate IT staff:

• System misconfigurations
• Inadequate risk assessment and management
• System patching delays
• Process and procedure oversights
• Reduced awareness of network threats
• Rushed deployments

Cost and scalability

The total cost of ownership is another drawback of on-premises file sharing solutions. On average, an organization can spend $10–25 million a year on a large data center. The hardware needed to run on-premises solutions is complex and cost-intensive, which also makes it hard to scale as data needs grow.

On-premises file sharing solutions have a fixed resource capacity. If companies need more resources, they have to purchase more servers. At an enterprise level, these hard drives can cost thousands of dollars. Should resource demands decrease, the additional storage capacity won’t be utilized.

To better manage cost concerns, many organizations are no longer building new data center infrastructure. Instead, 62% of companies plan to increase rack density to meet resource requirements. Increasing the density of racks allocates more computing power without expanding the physical space of the on-premises data center.

Is a hybrid solution right for your business?

When it comes to modernizing file sharing and storage, many companies treat the cloud and on-premises solutions as a case of one or the other. However, there’s another option: leveraging the best of both solutions in a hybrid approach.

A hybrid file sharing solution is one that combines elements of cloud-based and on-premises services. This creates a single environment containing on-premises, private, and public cloud resources. By 2025, Gartner predicts that 85% of infrastructure strategies will integrate on-premises and cloud options.

However, migrating to the cloud is not always a straightforward process. For example, many organizations rely on legacy systems. These systems are outdated, expensive to run, but are also critical to supporting business operations and may be highly customized to meet an organization’s specific needs.

Even though legacy systems are considered obsolete technology, their predictability and familiarity keep them in use in a variety of businesses and industries. For example:

• Banking and finance.The financial industry relies on COBOL, a programming language created in 1959. It is the foundation of 43% of all banking systems, including both ATMs and in-person transactions. Banks spend 70% of their IT budget maintaining legacy systems.

• Retail and commercial operations. Retail organizations rely on legacy software in sales terminals and other critical business functions, spending 58% of their IT budget on system maintenance.

Modernizing a legacy system is no small feat—you either invest the time and money in building new software or replacing it with a cloud solution. The more complex and outdated a legacy system is, the greater the possibility of migration challenges.

Hybrid solutions give businesses greater control over how and where data is stored and accessed. You can allocate resources on a few factors, such as data sensitivity or regulatory compliance.

Files containing highly sensitive data, such as personally identifiable information (PII), can be stored on a server on-premises. Less critical resources, for example, public website content, can be routed to the cloud.

Enhance your file sharing security with WinZip Enterprise

No matter if your solutions are on-premises or in the cloud, you must protect your data against unauthorized access and loss. As files are shared between the server and an end-user’s device, they are vulnerable to attacks.

While an on-premises solution shares files only to those on the corporate network, employees could introduce risks through shadow IT. Shadow IT is the use of unauthorized tools that are not provided by the company. Most employees (80%) admit to using unapproved solutions.

On-premises file sharing can be made even more secure with WinZip Enterprise. With this highly customizable solution, your IT team has granular control over how files are shared and stored. This makes it easy to implement and enforce policies related to file security, sharing, and backups.

Learn how WinZip Enterprise enhances your organization’s on-premises file sharing solutions.

Businesses rely on technology to keep operations and workflows running smoothly. One such technology is data storage, which is how companies house and safeguard their information.

There’s no one way to store data. Some businesses leverage on-premises servers, while others store data in the cloud or removable storage devices. At the enterprise level, with potentially thousands of employees spread across multiple locations, companies require more advanced solutions.

In this article, we will explain the importance of determining the right type of data storage for your organization’s data security. We will cover the differences between various data storage solutions, as well as best practices to avoid cybersecurity risks associated with storing data.

Cybersecurity considerations for data storage

Stored data is considered at rest when it is not actively being accessed or used. Data at rest is a popular target for cyber-attacks because a single attack vector can yield massive amounts of information.

At the enterprise level, companies experience a 63% growth in data volumes on average per month. This large volume of business-critical data must be properly protected against various cyber threats:

• Internal threat actors. Employees, contractors, and third-party vendors are responsible for more than 40% of serious data security incidents. For example, while working at a hospital, an employee with authorized access downloaded files to a USB stick before quitting the next day. The files contained sensitive data such as patient names and test results and impacted more than 40,000 individuals.

• Unintentional internal errors. While internal actors are responsible for 43% of data loss, half of those incidents are accidental. Unintentional errors often stem from a lack of awareness of proper security controls. For example, an IT technician with inadequate training accidentally deleted 20.68 terabytes of Dallas police data. The loss of these 8.7 million files occurred because the employee deleted them from storage without validating that the transfer was complete.

• External threat actors. Outside parties account for just under 60% of serious data security incidents. A common technique to gain unauthorized access is phishing, which is when attackers impersonate a reputable person or entity to trick their victims. For example, Twitter staff were targeted in a phishing attack that allowed malicious actors to access the accounts and messages of high-profile users. By tweeting from the compromised accounts, the hackers stole approximately $118,000 in a Bitcoin scam.

Data storage best practices

Comprehensive data security starts by knowing what kinds of sensitive data you have stored and where. This is why data classification is an important component of an enterprise-level storage solution. This process groups data sets according to the level of sensitivity, which in turn impacts the risk you face if the data is lost or compromised.

For example, internal information such as revenue projections and business strategies should be accessible only by company employees. While it needs protection, you wouldn’t need to allocate high-level security resources like data masking and encryption for this type of data.

Highly sensitive data, however, requires additional resources to prevent unauthorized access. This type of information is often restricted or confidential, so its loss or compromise could be devasting to the organization.

Best practices to secure enterprise data storage solutions include:

• Access controls. Because more than 40% of data incidents are caused by internal actors, it is important to carefully monitor and control your storage access privileges. For example, permission-based user roles grant an individual user access to only what data is necessary for their job functions. This also enables data monitoring, in which your IT admins can review user activity to pinpoint unusual or unsafe behavior.

• Encryption. File-level encryption ensures that only authorized users can access and use data. Data storage typically uses logical structures to hold information, which makes it an easier target than data moving through a network. Advanced encryption capabilities protect files and folders, even if the end device is stolen or compromised.

• Data minimization. Data minimization is the processes of collecting and retaining the minimum amount of information needed to provide a service or product. This has several benefits, such as reducing storage costs, limiting cybersecurity risks, and enhancing regulatory compliance. Enterprise-level tools have functionalities that reduce your overall storage volume, such as finding and flagging duplicate files.

• Endpoint security. Even a secure data storage solution can be compromised by devices that connect to network resources. From laptops to servers, mobile devices, routers, and more, cybercriminals target endpoints to access data stored on them and to infiltrate the company’s network. They must be secured with functionalities such as encryption, antivirus protection, and application controls.

Risks of improper data storage

Data is typically stored in the cloud or an on-premises datacenter. An on-premises datacenter is where physical assets such as servers, operating systems, and other hardware are kept on company property.

Cloud storage uses a global network of remote servers, providing on-demand access to files and data. Currently, more than 60% of corporate data is stored in the cloud. Cloud environments can be public, private, or a combination of both.

In a public cloud platform, multiple users share virtual resources that are provisioned by third-party vendors. A private cloud is a single-tenant environment, which means the entire computing infrastructure is dedicated to a single organization. There are two primary forms of private cloud: one that is hosted in a remote private cloud and one whose infrastructure is located on-premises.

A hybrid cloud uses components of both public and private clouds, giving organizations greater control over their data management. For example, you can use the on-premises private cloud to store highly sensitive data. Less sensitive, non-critical data can be stored in the public cloud. Thanks to this flexibility with storage options based on data classification, 87% of enterprises leverage a hybrid cloud strategy.

Whether on-premises, in the cloud, or a hybrid environment, the right type of data storage is essential for proper data security. However, not following data storage best practices can open the door to cybersecurity attacks.

For example, in 2021, a cybersecurity analytics firm stored data in an unsecured database that lacked the proper authentication protocols. The exposed database provided open access to more than 5 billion records containing sensitive information such as names, email addresses, and passwords.

The stored data was part of the firm’s cyber intelligence services, which collects information from previous data breaches. If a client’s information appeared in the database, the firm would alert them of a potential data compromise.

However, in this instance, it was the database containing breach data that was exposed. Cyber attackers exploited the lack of password or multi-factor authentication requirements, which allowed for unrestricted access to anyone with an internet connection.

How WinZip Enterprise enhances data storage security

WinZip® Enterprise is a comprehensive solution for maintaining proper data security. It combines industry-leading data encryption, sharing, management, and file compression with centralized IT control. This enables you to customize the user experience, including encryption methods, access controls, and other security provisions.

Thanks to native integration with leading enterprise data storage providers, WinZip Enterprise makes it easy to securely store and share data across services such as One Drive, Microsoft Teams, SharePoint, and more.

Discover how WinZip Enterprise fits into a successful enterprise data storage solution strategy.

Cloud-based file sharing describes a variety of services that enable users to store, synchronize, and share files in the cloud. It gives end-users the ability to access files at any time and location—all they need is an internet-capable device, such as a smartphone, laptop, or tablet.

People are increasingly turning to cloud-based sharing as our workplaces become more and more digitized. For example, over 90% of midsize organizations plan to adopt a hybrid work structure, which changes how people work and collaborate. Specifically, it requires digital access to enable off-premises file sharing.

This article highlights the benefits of cloud-based file sharing and best practices to keep your data secure. We will also look at common issues with cloud file sharing and explain how to balance accessibility and security with WinZip® Enterprise.

Benefits of Cloud-Based File Sharing

Cloud-based solutions have many benefits over traditional physical storage methods:

• Lower costs. Files shared through the cloud travel through a cloud computing system rather than on-premises data infrastructure. This eliminates the need for physical file storage, such as hard drives and servers. An enterprise-level hard drive can cost hundreds of dollars, and a single server can cost anywhere from $3,500 to over $12,000.

• Secure backup and recovery.With cloud-based file sharing, you can automate scheduling for data backups. Files that are regularly backed up in another location can be retrieved following the loss, corruption, or destruction of your original files.

• Data and user accountability. Cloud-based file sharing gives your IT team administrative controls over factors such as password protocols, encryption levels, and file tracking. This increases data accountability and limits user access to only what’s necessary for their specific job role and responsibilities.

• Accessibility. The most tangible benefit of cloud-based file sharing is that you can access files from anywhere using your preferred device. This makes it ideal not only for remote workers and hybrid work environments, but also facilitates secure file sharing with external stakeholders, such as contractors, third parties, or business partners.

Best Practices for Cloud-Based File Sharing

While 94% of enterprise organizations already use cloud services, a lack of comprehensive security measures puts cloud-based data at risk of loss, theft, or compromise.

A common misconception with cloud-based file sharing is that the cloud service provider (CSP) alone is responsible for security. This incorrect assumption could contribute to the fact that 83% of businesses don’t encrypt files in the cloud, making them prime targets for cyberattacks.

In fact, cloud security is a shared responsibility between the user and provider. Your organization’s data is your responsibility, including how it is stored and who can access it. While CSPs use several standard practices to secure the cloud, additional action is needed on your part.

Use the following best practices to keep your company’s data safe:

Manage Configuration Settings

Your configuration settings are what give you control over the cloud operating environment. While these environments are secure by default, you can manually change the permissions settings. However, oversights, errors, and poor decision-making can all lead to misconfigurations.

For example, your IT team is trying to streamline workflows and simplify internal processes. They change the permission settings to grant file access to anyone in the company with the proper credentials.

This new level of exposure increases the attack surface for data breaches and other cyberattacks, because a greater number of individuals can access the data. Whether through simple human error or a hacker stealing a user’s login credentials, the risk of data compromise increases as access permission settings are lowered.

According to security researchers, around 70% of all cloud security issues arise from misconfigurations, and 90% of companies have misconfigurations that make them vulnerable. Develop clear standards and policies for how files are secured to prevent such errors and oversights.

Encrypt Your Files

Unencrypted data can be accessed and read by anyone who intercepts it. Many CSPs use end-to-end encryption, but this only secures the data as it is shared from one end system or device to another. File-level encryption works to safeguard individual files for more granular security controls.

File encryption makes data unusable to anyone without the correct password or decryption key. This keeps data secure as it travels between users, devices, and systems. However, 83% of companies do not use encryption, and around 40% of employees access organizational data using unsecured personal applications.

If compromised files are not properly encrypted, your organization could face legal and professional consequences. From lost revenue to customer turnover and compliance violations, unencrypted files can be catastrophic in the event of a data breach.

Monitor File-Sharing Activity

Monitoring the movement of files and data helps IT administrators detect and remediate behaviors that could indicate malicious cyberactivity. Use an access control list to ensure that users are not accessing data irrelevant to their job role or function.

For example, over 50% of organizations have 1,000 or more sensitive, unencrypted files that can be accessed by all employees. By giving full access to all business data, organizations are four times as likely to experience a data breach.

Maintaining the principle of least privilege (POLP) with user access permissions helps your organization reduce the opportunity for data theft. The principle of least privilege is the process of limiting data access to only what is necessary for a user’s specific job role or functions. Around 43% of data loss is caused by intentional or accidental insider action, and permission-based user roles help you track unusual or risky behavior.

It is also important to conduct regular access control reviews. Because permission-based user roles are based on factors relevant to a job role or project assignment, access needs can change over time. If a user no longer needs access to certain files or systems, reviewing access controls ensures you switch off unneeded credentials.

WinZip Enterprise Secures Cloud-Based File Sharing

WinZip Enterprise uses powerful AES encryption that safeguards data at the file level. It integrates with leading cloud storage providers, giving you the ability to securely share files across multiple supported services.

For example, WinZip Enterprise works directly with Microsoft Teams. This streamlines cloud-based file sharing between colleagues and clients, no matter their location. With native integration across numerous cloud services, you can share files securely without impeding ease of access to the cloud.

WinZip Enterprise is also highly customizable, giving IT administrators more control over included features and platforms. IT teams can set password and encryption standards for users, as well as protocols for the movement of files and data. They can also create a sandbox of approved sharing services, ensuring that files cannot be shared via unauthorized platforms.

Learn how WinZip Enterprise helps make cloud-based file sharing more secure while maintaining accessibility.