5 Steps for Data Theft Investigation

1. Data theft Investigation is the unauthorized removal or disclosure of personal information. It’s usually conducted for a monetary reward or in order to target a specific individual or organization. The goal is to disclose personal information about an individual without their knowledge or consent. It’s VERY difficult to trace and detect data breaches because they are so subtle. But now, with advanced technology, it’s easier than ever before to discover and correct such breaches. Here are 5 steps you should take if you suspect your company has been compromised: 1. File A Police Report If the data you’re deleting or entering is stolen, you should report it to law enforcement immediately. Using the online reporting function of your file-sharing software, report the incident to the local police. It’s likely that the authorities will investigate and take action if the data is stolen. If the data is not stolen, you’ll need to process the report through a reporting portal. After you have a report, submit it to the local police. 2. Search For Suspicious Activity When you’re suspicious of sudden or excessive activity, check to see if there are any contacts in your company who might be involved. If you’re not sure who’s involved, talk to your managers or executives. If you’re in the marketing or sales team, ask the head of communications if they know anyone in marketing or sales. If you don’t know anyone in marketing or sales, check with your HR or legal department.

2. 3. Ongoing Analysis If the incident turns out to be a planned data breach, you should investigate how it happened and how it could have gotten out. Start by reviewing the incident report, looking at any documentation related to the incident, and asking yourself this question: “Is this normal for our company?” The best way to find out if your company does normal thing is to conduct an audit. The audit will list everything your company does that’s wrong, and it will be actionable. If you find anything that isn’t normal, you need to start looking into it. You can share the results of your audit with your HR or legal teams to receive better information. After you have the results of an security audit, take a look at the following steps to determine whether you have been hacked: •Determine if the incident is he-or- hers. •If the answer is yes, how did the incident happen? •If the answer is no, what do we know about the incident? •Final thoughts 4. Proper Storage And Disposal Of Personal Information As with any sensitive information, you should keep it safe and secure at all times. Your physical address, email address, and Social Security number should never be printed or given out to the public. Instead, keep it in a secure folder. Keep your computer data and docs in a secure location that is easily accessible and protected from prying eyes. If you have no idea where to store your computer data and docs, you can take this advice from experienced data protection experts. Especially when doing business online, you should keep your data in a cloud-Forensicsbased service. This way, you’re not storing it on your own computer. You can also take advantage of online storage and management services that you can store your data in a cloud-based format. 5. Delegate Identity Theft To Another Organization If you’re the one who has been compromised, it’s important to get the identity of the perpetrator out of the equation. The best way to do this is to notify law enforcement and the relevant authorities regarding the incident. Once you’ve done this, you can focus on finding the root of the problem and preventing future attacks. Final Thoughts If you think you’ve been compromised by any means, or if you have any ideas about how to protect your data, follow these five steps to find out who’s behind these attacks and prevent them from happening again. Get in touch with an IT security professional who can help you find the source of problems and recommend how best to combat them. Try using a virtual private network (VPN). A VPN lets you create a virtual private network that’s different from your wired network and changes your traffic patterns, making it harder for prying eyes to trace back. Consider turning off the internet connection while you’re here. Doing so will help to keep your computer and data safe from prying eyes.