Data security: the foundation for safe AI use

We make AI work means that you not only make AI available, but also ensure that employees can work with it safely and responsibly. More and more organizations are using AI tools to work together more efficiently and better. This is sometimes done in a controlled manner, but by no means always. When employees choose tools themselves and share company information in them, sensitive data can end up outside the managed environment. How do you gain insight into that use and offer employees a safe alternative?

The risks of uncontrolled AI use

In their private lives, many people are already making full use of AI. For example, ChatGPT has become an integral part of everyday life for many. Because the efficiency benefits are clearly noticeable, AI tools are slowly but surely finding their way into organizations. Especially when employees are not yet offered suitable tools from the organization itself.

In such cases, they often use a free or personal version of an AI tool on their own initiative to work faster and easier. What they do not always realize is that the processing of entered data differs per AI tool, account type and institution. Some consumer services may use information to improve models unless the user opts out. Business information can also end up outside the organization's managed environment.

This can involve sensitive business information, such as intellectual property, customer data or HR files. Even if a supplier does not use the data to train a model, sharing such information may still violate the organization's policy or applicable laws and regulations.

Such a non-policy is a bit like driving in the dark without proper signage. You drive on hoping that you will stay on the right road, but without a clear view of where you will end up. Before you know it, you have lost control of the route.

How to facilitate AI within your organization: 2 tips to prevent your data from leaking to the outside world

1. Gain insight

With Microsoft Purview Data Security Posture Management , you gain insight into where sensitive data lives, how it is used, and what risks arise when using AI apps and agents. Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps also helps to discover, assess, and block SaaS and AI tools that are being used.

With that insight, you can draw up targeted policies and talk to employees about the tools they use. This way you not only discover where risks arise, but also why employees turn to these solutions and where existing processes or resources are still insufficient.

2. Offer a safe alternative

Insight and policy alone are not enough. Employees want to use AI to do their jobs faster and easier. By offering a well-secured solution, you reduce the chance that they will use uncontrolled tools themselves. Microsoft 365 Copilot is an example of this.

Microsoft 365 Copilot works within the existing access rights of Microsoft 365. That is why you should check in advance whether these rights are still correct and whether sensitive information has not been shared too widely. With sensitivity labels, Data Loss Prevention policies and clear agreements about data use, you can set up additional protection. This way you make AI available in a controlled way, without losing sight of the benefits for employees.

Frequently asked questions about data security and safe AI use

Why is data security indispensable?

Do you want to use an AI tool like Microsoft Copilot in your organization? Then data security is indispensable. Because such a tool will 'snoop' through your data, you have to make the right data accessible at the right times. In addition, it is crucial to organize your data in such a way that people cannot just share all information.

How do companies implement integrated data protection for sensitive customer data?

Companies are implementing integrated data protection for sensitive customer data by combining classification, access policies, and monitoring in a single platform instead of stacking separate solutions. With Microsoft Purview, you lay that foundation: Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) for AI also shows which AI tools employees use and whether they share critical data in the process. This has become urgent because with free AI tools, employees often unwittingly give permission to train models with company data, from intellectual property to HR files. Data protection is therefore also the foundation for safely facilitating AI such as Microsoft Copilot 365. Wortell uses a Data Security Assessment to map out where sensitive data is located and what policy is needed.

How do hospitals better protect patient data against data breaches?

Hospitals are better protecting patient data against data breaches by first gaining insight into where that data flows, including towards AI tools that healthcare workers use themselves. Microsoft Purview with Data Security Posture Management for AI makes it clear which tools are in use and whether critical data is being shared in them, then you limit with policy which data can be shared. At least as important is to offer a safe alternative, such as Microsoft 365 Copilot, within your own environment, because banning without an alternative leads to shadow use. Because Copilot follows the access rights that already exist, cleaning up data that is too widely shared is the first concrete step. For hospitals, this insight is also a requirement from NEN 7510, which means that uncontrolled AI use is not only a security risk but also a compliance risk. Wortell performs Data Security Assessments for this and provides continuous protection through Managed Data Security.