Jan 16, 2014

Sharing files across organizations is becoming increasingly important as staff rely more on data for their daily operations. Online file sharing has made decision makers rethink their approach to business methods and how to implement the solutions without compromising integral information. As this technology becomes more of an asset for companies, it will be important to ensure that the services are integrated successfully and threats are effectively mitigated by built-in security measures.

Migrating to a file sharing platform can be challenging due to the amount of planning required, but by having a strategy in place, the process will go by much quicker. MSPMentor noted that involving key stakeholders and identifying goals will be crucial to integrating services. These factors will help ensure that all concerns and demands are addressed while also providing a way to further business objectives. By incorporating achievement markers from the beginning, effective use of file sharing solutions will drive development and innovate mission-critical functions.

“Do your best to make sure that other departments have been involved in the decision-making process,” according to the source. “This will help ensure that you don’t get any last-minute feature requests (or complaints) from departments that were needlessly kept in the dark.”

Incorporating security demands
While file sharing programs can offer significant benefits, organizations must also consider the safety measures they must follow in order to protect integral business assets. Decision makers must look atkey management, encryption and monitoring controls that will give better oversight into where data is located and what users have access to view it, according to Cloud Times contributor Jieming Zhu. These solutions will provide a platform for secure file sharing and ensure that companies have better governance over their information. With federated encryption key management, the organization won’t have to rely on a single vendor to keep the codes. This will enhance the desires to guard against data breaches and keep the service provider on as a mediator for various processes.

“To secure and protect the privacy of content in cloud sharing services, organizations need to supplement service provider controls,” Zhu wrote. “Using an infrastructure that combines the three criteria described above not only provides data protection, but also prevents content from being released by cloud providers to any third party without the consent of content owners.”