Attestation is defined as an official verification that something is true or authentic. In terms of information technologies, it is the process that verifies that access to information, data, and resources is limited to authorized users. Certifying that access is granted to only those who should have access and revoked from those who are unauthorized, attestation is a central component of identity governance.
Key to any organization’s information security, identity governance allows organizations to issue secure digital identities for users, who can be authorized to access particular resources necessary for their role in the organization. For example, when an employee is hired, their digital identity gives them access to information and data that they need to complete their duties. As the employee’s role within the organization changes and they need access to previously inaccessible resources, attestation and identity governance ensure that they can continue performing their job through changes in their authorization to access information, data, and resources.
By employing identity governance methods, organizations can enhance and strengthen the security of their data and protect their business. As the systems companies use to store data and resources evolve, so do the threats to their information. With the rise of remote working, cloud-based systems, and more complex work lifecycles, identity governance has increased in its importance. By assigning permissions to users based on the stage of the employee lifecycle they are in, identity governance can protect from data breaches. When sensitive information is restricted access to only those who are authorized, organizations can ensure that their data isn’t getting into the wrong hands.
However, many organizations cannot manually manage system access. Thus, an organization’s identity governance and attestation processes can be vastly improved with automation. Creating policies that assign access to particular resources based on a user’s role can eliminate human errors and increase data security. Additionally, automation allows violations of the policies governing access to specific data to be identified faster than manual methods, better preparing the organization to avoid data breaches.
With attestation being a key component of identity governance, organizations are better able to monitor the access of their data and resources, ensuring that is done only by authorized users. It also allows users to be granted access to data necessary to complete their duties quickly so that they can be productive and stay productive. Without attestation and a clear process for identity governance, organizations are susceptible to data breaches, as it is likely that any user within their system can access the data, whether they should or not. Ensure that your organization keeps information secure with effective and efficient attestation processes.
YouAttest automates the creation and review of these attestation resport. To learn more about YouAttest, please register for our webinar with YouAttest customer Craig Guinasso, Director of Information Security of Exact Sciences on Tuesday, June 2nd at 10am PT. ,
Garret Grajek, CISSP, CEH
CEO of YouAttest
