Extract from Exterro’s article “An Accurate Data Catalog Is the Foundation of Data Risk Management”
At Exterro, we often talk about data as the new oil—a primary driver of growth and competitive advantage. It’s not a novel metaphor, but it’s a useful one. Because, as with oil, there are significant risks associated with its extraction, storage, transport, and use. If you do not know exactly where your data is, who owns it, what it’s used for, whether it was collected with consent, how it is secured–and more–those data assets can quickly transform into serious liabilities.
As established in earlier blog posts in this series, the cost of failing to manage these risks is steep. Whether it is an average $10.22 million data breach cost or a 10% spike in litigation spend, the root cause is frequently the same: you cannot protect or quickly act on data that you don’t understand. The alternative to reactive chaos is a proactive posture built on a single foundation: a continuously updated data catalog.
For a deeper understanding of holistic data risk management and why it’s important, download our whitepaper, An Executive Playbook for Data Risk Management.
