The Secrets Of Secure Document Sharing In Modern Business

They say that a problem shared is a problem halved but, in recent years, it’s been harder than ever to share business documents. After all, you can’t just head over to a colleague's desk with a client invoice and look through it together anymore. Disparate workforces and paperless offices require far more intuitive ways of working.

This comes at a time when remote working setups call for longer distance file shares than ever before, and it’s an issue that’s left countless companies in the muddy waters of data breaches and compliance issues up to now. With even small-scale breaches now widely reported in the media, and with consumers increasingly untrusting of how companies handle their information and important files, this is an issue that you need to address sooner rather than later.

In this article, we’ll consider the risks of ongoing insecure document sharing, and the secrets to ensuring secure sharing at last in your modern business.

There were an average of 1,876 cyberattacks per organization in the last quarter of 2024, which marks a record 75% increase compared to the same period in 2023. This proves that hackers are more insistent than ever before, and they’ll constantly put your company’s security landscape at risk until they find a weak spot.

Unfortunately, file sharing ends up being that weak spot for many organizations, and hackers aren’t even the only thing you need to worry about when you fail to get on top here. In fact, poorly managed file shares can put the nail in your company's coffin in a range of different ways.

Just a few of the risks you’ll face from failing to ensure secure file sharing include –

• Data leakage: Data leakage is the most common issue with company file sharing and, more often than not, it’s due to human error. Without proper file-sharing procedures, precautions, and software, there’s every chance that an employee could simply click the wrong sensitive file to share with an unauthorized colleague. As well as being a breach in itself, a mistake like this can put sensitive files right out there for cybercriminals to gobble up.

• Cybersecurity threats: Speaking of cybercriminals, cybersecurity threats are an obvious concern when it comes to internal file sharing. Malware infections, in particular, will often target file-sharing platforms. If they gain access, criminals can not only steal your file information, but may even be able to gain access to, and control, your entire system.

• A lack of governance: As a manager, you should always know what’s going on in your business, but poorly managed file sharing can prevent this from being the case. File sharing that happens outside of specific company software can be particularly rogue, leaving you entirely unaware of who has access to what documents, and on which devices they’re stored.

• Compliance violations: Improper file-sharing procedures can all too easily lead to non-compliance with everything from GDPR to HIPAA, often without your knowledge. As well as facing hefty fines and potential legal action, the reputational damage of breaches like these has already led to the closure of countless companies, particularly within sensitive industries like healthcare.

It’s easy to look at the list above and feel helpless about your file-sharing pursuits – after all, you can’t operate without sharing files between colleagues, but how can you possibly care for client information while doing so?

Luckily, while this is by no means an easy goal, it’s something you can achieve with the right approach. The top secrets to bear in mind when aiming for secure file sharing include –

Standard file formats offer very little in terms of protection, resulting in a far higher risk of breaches as information moves across devices. Secure formats like PDF files offer a far preferable option, as they benefit from security protections like encryption, watermarks, and even password protection where required.

What’s more, you can easily utilize PDFs within your business by building a pdf viewer php script for free, or downloading specific software that can seamlessly convert your documents into PDFs across internal software. This latter point is particularly effective, as high-quality software will also provide capabilities like document monitoring and specific permissions.

Secure file transfer protocol, or SFTP, is a network protocol that provides a much-needed extra layer of protection across file access, transfer, and management within your company. SFTP was originally designed as an extension to Secure Shell (SS), but this extension is more suited to remote file sharing thanks to the use of shell encryption to protect data that’s moving across internal systems. SFTP also uses key authentication to protect your information while it’s in transit.

SFTP is particularly great because it provides fast and reliable data sharing you can rely on, even across multiple files at once. However, while this protocol can work great with your internal systems, it’s worth bearing in mind that this 27-year-old network protocol isn’t designed to work within the cloud or hybrid environments that many modern businesses rely on.

It’s all too easy to lose track of what’s happening with your files if they’re simply floating around on employee devices. This is especially true considering that around 70% of employers now support BYOD initiatives that see teams bringing their devices from home. This way of working brings benefits like savings of up to $341 per employee, but data loss also becomes more of a pressing concern.

Options like cloud storage solutions (while not compatible with SFTP), are becoming an increasingly popular way around these risks, especially if you select a cloud provider that takes a strong stance on security. As well as simply ensuring complete oversight of file activity, high-end options will also provide benefits like end-to-end encryptions, reliable backup systems, and comprehensive access systems, no matter what device your employees are using at any given time.

Overseeing user permissions is guaranteed to help file sharing run that bit more smoothly. It can certainly address issues like the unauthorized access that cybercriminals rely on to get into your systems.

User permissions, at their simplest level, ensure that only authorized personnel can access any given document within your company infrastructure. Truly secure sharing nowadays also relies on software that can manage everything from revoking permissions when employees leave your team, to omitting unauthorized information from even the files that your team members are authorized to access. With the right software, you’ll also be able to easily access information about who has authorization for each file at any given time, and even when they’ve used that file/who they’ve shared it with.

This level of governance can make a huge difference in reducing accidental data leakage. It’s also essential for keeping you in line with compliance expectations. Plus, being able to keep an eye on things is great for ensuring that you’re always in control of how files are handled, even when they’re shared across departments.

Regular security audits are generally key to improving cybersecurity in your business, and experts recommend them at least every six months or potentially more often depending on the types of data you’re handling.

Commonly, these cybersecurity audits will look for any network vulnerabilities, which should include weak spots across your file-sharing systems. Particular issues to bear in mind while reassessing might include outdated permissions or unauthorized attempts to access particular files.

These audits ensure you’re always bridging gaps in your file-sharing operations before criminals notice them. It also ensures you’ll have a far more detailed idea of where cybercriminals might be targeting your business, and how you can strengthen those protections to prevent them from getting in.

So far we’ve spoken a lot about how things like your file-sharing systems can do a lot of heavy lifting from a security standpoint, but remember, 95% of cybersecurity breaches happen due to human error. The more your team knows about sharing files safely, the more likely they are to play by the rules.

It’s particularly important to provide at least semi-annual security training that informs your team of new cybersecurity threats that they might not know to look out for otherwise. You should also keep them fully informed on any updates or changes to file-sharing systems that could end up impacting safety otherwise.

Long-distance document sharing is a cornerstone for modern business success, but it’s also one of the hardest things to get right from a security standpoint. Instead of scrambling to recover from a breach that’ll inevitably arise if you don’t get on top of this issue, it’s important that you understand the secrets of secure document sharing right now. From the right file formats to software you can rely on and even simple training initiatives, these tips will all help to keep your company safe, even with remote work and BYOD in your midst.