This Month in Cloud Data Security
Cloud Data Security Is Evolving—Here’s What You Need to Know
Snowflake just announced support for Autotagging, building on its previous feature for sensitive data classification: Snowflake Autotagging Documentation. This new capability helps organizations identify sensitive data in their databases and automatically apply tags that can be used for enforcing policies.
On the surface, it sounds like a game-changer—and it is a helpful feature. But here’s the critical question: If Snowflake is adding these native features, why would you still need a Data Security platform?
Lessons from the M&S Data Breach
In April 2025, Marks & Spencer (M&S), one of the UK’s most trusted retailers, disclosed that names and contact details of over 900 employees had been exposed in a data breach. The attack was attributed to the Scattered Spider ransomware group, also known as Octo Tempest, a threat actor known for social engineering tactics and access to sophisticated toolkits. The hacker group used DragonForce, a ransomware strain that exfiltrates sensitive data to pressure victims into paying. DragonForce also deletes shadow copies, disables antivirus tools, and can be customized to evade detection and maximize disruption.
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Why Data Access Visibility is Critical for Compliance
In today’s complex regulatory environment, protecting sensitive data isn’t optional—it’s mandated. From GDPR and HIPAA to PCI DSS and beyond, compliance frameworks demand more than just access restrictions. They require organizations to prove they’re actively monitoring, documenting, and enforcing data privacy policies.
But here’s the problem: many companies still lack real-time visibility into how data is accessed, by whom, and under what circumstances. Without that visibility, even the most well-intentioned data security policies can fall short—leaving organizations vulnerable to breaches, fines, and reputational damage.
Getting Started with Format-Preserving Encryption (FPE)
You’ve identified Format-preserving Encryption (FPE) as the right fit for your data protection needs, which is a great choice. FPE is a powerful tool as it helps secure sensitive data without breaking the systems that depend on it. However, like any strong security tool, a successful and effective rollout depends on more than just turning it on.