Introduction
Such findings make any enterprise wonder if they are doing enough to protect their data. A common incident is sensitive data slipping through during training due to the more relaxed nature of the exercise. Maintaining data security and privacy during training is as essential as it is during any other business operation. That is why we recommend Assima, the most secure systems training platform for enterprises that deal with sensitive data at every step. With Assima’s built-in security features, you do not have to take additional measures to secure enterprise training and keep your data safe.
Here is one of the top ways Assima ensures data privacy and security during training.
The Rising Risk of Data Breaches in Training Environments
Live training is quite common in most enterprises as a means of gaining hands-on working experience. Even when providing training through screen captures as slides, guided videos, or documentation graphics, sensitive system data could end up with trainees who should not have access to that data. This could lead to a data breach that essentially breaks down the chain of command in the access pipeline. Moreover, it would also be violating compliance rules, which can have serious consequences like:
- Loss of reputation and trust with all stakeholders
- Legal action, fines, and even imprisonment
- Loss of licenses essential for operation
- Disruption of business operations at various levels
- Payment of damages to the injured party
- Damage to the reputation of the business in the market
- Loss of talent from the workforce and potential recruits
- Withdrawal of investment and related losses
- Steep increase in insurance costs
- Impact on market reach and supply chain
Moreover, if the data somehow landed in the hands of the wrong person, they could do much harm with it, like holding it ransom, selling it to competitors or people with ill intentions, using it for blackmail purposes, leveraging it for market manipulation, etc. The repercussions are worse if such incidents happen in an enterprise operating in a regulated industry. The compliance laws are far stricter in these sectors due to the greater impact such a data breach can have on the affected people. For example, medical or financial data leaks can lead to danger to the life of a person, government office data leaks can lead to corruption, and so on. Secure enterprise training is not just necessary but mandatory for businesses in such sectors.
What is Data Integrity in Enterprise Training?
Data integrity refers to the accuracy, reliability, and consistency of data throughout its lifecycle to ensure quality and usability. In the context of training, data integrity is necessary to prevent learners from making the wrong deductions and conclusions due to incorrect data or missing the context of the information. Often, in an attempt to sanitize sensitive data from learning materials, content creators end up replacing them with inaccurate data or blanking it out altogether, which can affect the quality of training in the process.
Of course, that does not imply that live system data should be used for training. What you need is a fine balance between integrity and security. Some acceptable methods for accurate yet secure enterprise training include:
- Anonymizing personally identifiable information (PII) so that the connection between a person and their information is broken
- Replacing numerical values with mock numbers that still follow business rules, often by feeding mock data into the live system to generate acceptable results
- Using expired yet relevant data, only after making sure that release of said data will not impact any party in any manner
- Creating and maintaining mock profiles with mock data, to be used and reused expressly for the purpose of training employees
- Using simulated environments and data that independently mimic the live system but remain isolated from the live ecosystem completely
Common Training Approaches That Compromise Data Security
While data integrity in employee training is a must, it should not come at the expense of data security and privacy. Here are some ways data security may be endangered during training:
Training in Live Production Systems
In the days preceding the use of tools like simulations and VR, hands-on learning could only be provided through live training. This inevitably exposed sensitive business data to trainees who did not have access clearance to view them.
Live User Shadowing with Sensitive Roles
Live user shadowing is a good way to let new users learn how to operate the system without actually working on it. However, if the user being shadowed has a sensitive role with high access clearance, you could still reveal sensitive data to low-access users.
Failure to Scrub System Data from Test Systems
Test systems used for training are often created on the foundation of the live system. As such, even minimal negligence could lead to sensitive live data making it to the training system and being seen or used by new users who should not have access to them.
Overuse Of Unsecured Training Environments
Many enterprises utilize training environments to ensure training without production access and avoid the above risks. However, overusing test credentials or unsecured sandboxes could lead to data leaks through exploitable channels.
How Assima Train Provides a Secure, Risk-Free Learning Space
Assima Train data protection capabilities provide five-pronged protection for business data. Here’s how:
Safe Simulation of Enterprise Apps
Assima uses a 4X patented cloning technology to scan application codes and create hyper-realistic, hyper-interactive simulations for training. These secure software simulations are completely isolated from the live system and provide true-to-life yet fully data-secure training environments for hands-on, scenario-based learning. Unlike sandboxes, there is zero chance of insecure connections.
Role-Based Learning with Access Awareness
Since Assima simulations act and react exactly like the live system, they are also capable of following individual learning paths based on user actions. Moreover, content creators can create different copies of the lesson customized to reflect the role and corresponding access level of the learners and deliver them accordingly. This ensures that employees do not gain knowledge beyond their access level.
In-App Support with Real-time Guidance
Assima In-App Search, is an in-application search capability that overlays live applications and provides real-time, contextual results from the central knowledgebase to users at the point of need. The results displayed are role-based and task-based. This reduces the chances of mistakes, especially in terms of gaining accidental access to screens or data that an employee in that role is not supposed to.
Anonymization to Preserve Data Privacy
Data anonymization is a highly useful feature provided by Assima for secure enterprise training. It allows you to cleanse Assima simulations of any personally identifiable, sensitive data in one click without having to re-record screens or edit the simulation as a whole. This feature allows you to create lessons en masse without worrying about data exposure and simply anonymize them all at once in the end.
Integration of Enterprise Security Rules
Assima provides the facility of integrating the security policies and access management systems of an enterprise directly into its platform so that any learners who have a profile in the company will automatically be treated as they are within the company vis a vis data access clearance. Moreover, Assima’s itself follows all necessary data security laws and regulations and possesses the necessary certifications too.
Understand with full clarity the measures taken by Assima to ensure complete data security for your enterprise.
Benefits of Using Assima Train for Secure Training
Here are a few ways Assima Train helps you achieve secure enterprise training in no time:
Protects Sensitive Customer and Internal Data
Data anonymization and access control coupled with role-based learning paths allowed by Assima ensure that any sensitive customer or other business data is not exposed to the wrong people or networks and compromised.
Accelerates Time to Proficiency in a Safe Setting
Assima’s enterprise training simulation tools allow employees to reach the required level of expertise in using new software within the expected time frame in a safe environment without the risk of accidental data leaks.
Scales Across Departments and Global Teams
Assima allows you to replicate lessons with sanitized data without the need to recreate copies from scratch. This is extremely useful when scaling training across teams and locations, preventing the need for repeated security checks.
Automates Access Control Per Company Rules
By automatically connecting with the access control and management system of the enterprise in question, Assima bypasses the need to define security rules and policies all over again when setting up training delivery.
Use Cases
There are many scenarios where data security and integrity in training must be maintained equally to ensure optimum outcomes. For example, data privacy in ERP training is a must since most of the sensitive data in a business runs through its ERP system. However, if you neglect data integrity, the quality of training will decrease. ERP platforms are usually feature-heavy with complicated UIs, like SAP, Oracle, or Workday. When learning to use them, trainees need to look and use data that adds up to ensure complete understanding. Be it financial data, logistics data, sales data, or HR data, when training to use ERP solutions like Microsoft Dynamics 365, Sage Intacct, or SAP, training data security maintenance is as important as integrity assurance.
The same goes for training in any software dealing with data in a regulated industry like financial and banking, medical, or public sectors. Regulated industry data is sensitive in every scenario and must always be protected and handled based on compliance frameworks. Secure enterprise training in these industries is therefore a necessity. Data exposure and handling during training must also be monitored to prevent the compromise of either security or integrity for the other.
Best Practices for Securing Enterprise Training
Leaving the onus of training security entirely on the training platform is strictly discouraged. Unless the users themselves are aware of what risks are posed by what actions, mistakes are inevitable. Follow the tips below to ensure secure enterprise training at all times:
- Always Simulate, Don’t Operate – Using simulations gapped securely from live systems instead of operating the live system itself for training is the best way to prevent any unnecessary risks.
- Monitor Access and Control Exposure – Always use access control systems with secure sign-ins, unique credentials, and defined profile clearance when tailoring content for different roles.
- Dummy Data is the Wiser Path – Using live data always introduces the risk of data breaches; the best way to avoid that is to use dummy data every time for every training requirement.
- Better Double-Check than be Sorry – Always check and recheck the data used in test environments and training platforms to be completely sure that no sensitive data is being exposed.
- Automate Compliance, Forego Reliance – Implement automatic compliance alerting systems at crucial training checkpoints so that you don’t have to depend on the unreliable human eye to catch violations.
Conclusion
Effective and secure enterprise training should not compromise system or data security while still delivering results-driven training. In an age when data is wealth, protecting it is our responsibility. Assima takes this responsibility very seriously, using multiple security measures to ensure 360° data protection during all training endeavors. Train your employees to full efficiency without risking company data by adopting Assima’s innovative solutions at scale.
Build your next training program with data security and integrity at the forefront with Assima.
Frequently Asked Questions
Let’s Answer Some of Your Questions.
Enterprise training with unreliable data can lead to information gaps, erroneous knowledge, and doubts regarding the topic. Data integrity prevents users from going out and operating live systems with faulty knowledge and creating risks to the business.
Assima Train uses features like one-click data anonymization, role-based learning paths, and integration with enterprise security and access systems to protect your business data during training.
Yes, it is entirely possible to provide effective training without using live systems. Simulations can be used to create a safe training environment that mirrors the live system to provide a hands-on learning experience for users.
Regulated industries are the top beneficiaries of secure training environments. Other than that, any enterprise dealing with sensitive data should always utilize secure enterprise training environments.
Assima Train is fully up-to-date with all necessary data privacy standards and certifications. You can check it out on the Security page on our website.