Many online applications, including content management systems, insurance portals healthcare portals, messaging apps, rely on the safe uploading and downloading of business-related files. Making uploads open to all is an attack vector of choice for malicious actors that can easily introduce malware and steal private data.
A reliable file-upload system should confirm that the uploaded files are compliant with a list of permitted file types and scan them for viruses prior to storing them. This helps ensure that the clients’ personal information is not disclosed and is in compliance with standards, such as HIPAA for health-related data as well as the GDPR for EU citizens.
The ability to determine the file type is crucial as attackers can often “mask” malicious files by changing their names to allowable extensions such as.jpg or.gif. Your solution may not be capable of detecting the actual file type, and thus allow it to pass unnoticed. To prevent this from happening, you must have a file upload system that can verify the extension of the file as well.
Another way to defend yourself against a range of attacks is to apply strong encryption to all data during both in flight and at rest. This turns files and messages into unreadable code that hackers cannot read, even if they gain firedataroom.com/why-choose-a-data-room-over-dropbox/ access to.
You can also create an uploading process that rejects any files that don’t conform to your naming conventions. This will help keep your team organised and keep confidential information from being disclosed in the names of files.
