Discover overlooked print security gaps and how a secure cloud PrintOps platform supports zero trust security in your print environment.
When news broke in October that top secret U.S. government documents were leaked on social media, it raised all the usual questions.
Who was responsible for the leak? How could something like this happen—and how can it be prevented in the future?
Initial reports indicate that at least one of the documents came from an officially printed briefing, which was then scanned and shared online.
The incident highlights several print security gaps common to many organizations, where printing is essentially anonymous and seen as secondary to higher-level network security concerns.
Learn about commonly overlooked print security gaps in today’s post.
Learn about emerging print security threats in the 2023 Print Security Landscape
Paper: The #1 Hidden Risk?
If you’re a bad actor who wants to anonymously leak information, paper is the single easiest way to leave as little trace as possible.
Even in highly secure organizations that look to put a wrapper around their digital information, it doesn’t work in the context of paper printing. That’s because, in the vast majority of cases, data loss prevention (DLP) solutions don’t extend to what people are printing.
Thus, leaking information is as simple as printing a document and leaving with it, photographing it or scanning it anonymously from an unsecured printer.
Printers and Endpoint Security
It’s not just printing paper that presents a security risk. It’s also the printers themselves, which are often loosely secured endpoints despite having storage, processing capabilities and network connectivity.
Common cybersecurity vulnerabilities associated with printers include print security gaps related to:
- Network access: Hackers can exploit printers to access other devices and sensitive data.
- Stored data: Storing past print jobs may leave confidential information open to hackers.
- Unauthorized use: Lack of authentication at devices such as printers and scanners means unauthorized users can access printers.
- Outdated security: Older or unpatched printers may lack current security protections, making them easy targets for bad actors.
- Physical access: Unsecured printers mean people can retrieve printouts that aren’t theirs or accidentally leave sensitive documents behind at printers.
Authentication Gaps
When organizations fail to treat print as the risk that it is, there are likely to be authentication gaps that in any other circumstance would raise red flags.
Imagine, for instance, an employee who accesses a computer that someone else was already logged into. For many companies, this would be considered a significant security violation.
If someone can walk up to a printer and scan a document without logging in, that person has access to a corporate asset without authentication. And yet, in most organizations, this is not a security violation.
The bottom line: if you’re not tracking who’s printing what, then printing is anonymous, creating print security gaps that leave your organization open to risk.
Growing Print Security Risks Call for Zero Trust
Print security breaches are becoming more common, with more than half of companies reporting a loss of data resulting from insecure printing practices.
The truth is that no organization is truly secure unless they incorporate print as part of their overall security footprint and strategy, rather than treating it as a secondary threat.
A cloud PrintOps platform built around zero trust security principles can help address these commonly overlooked print security gaps by:
- Using end-to-end encryption to protect print data, which tends to be one of the least frequently monitored information flows within an organization
- Performing proactive patch management and vulnerability testing to keep devices secure
- Verifying all endpoints and requiring authentication to print and release files from printers
- Generating audit trails of who printed what
- Enforcing print policies to restrict printing by certain users, locations or devices
Ultimately, companies concerned with prevention of print data loss must acknowledge the risk that print represents within their security footprint—even if national security secrets aren’t at stake.
Social security numbers, private health information, account numbers and salary data are just a few examples of sensitive data at risk due to lax print security. Addressing these risks demands a modern, cloud-based approach to printing centered on zero trust security principles that protects data at every turn—in essence, a PrintOps platform.
