Flow Unveils GenAI DLP: Data Loss Prevention for the AI Era
We are in the midst of a GenAI revolution, and the question on everyone’s mind is – how can we join this powerful trend without compromising our data security along the way?
Just as was the case with cloud technologies a decade ago, GenAI is evolving much faster than our security practices. According to a PCW report, nearly 100% of companies plan to launch one or more AI initiatives in the near future. But how many of these companies are truly ready to tackle the unique and immense challenges GenAI poses to data security?
In this blog post we explain why GenAI has forever changed the data security landscape and introduce GenAI DLP – the first solution to secure data in this new and exciting world.
Protecting Data in the Age of GenAI: Why the Stakes have Never been Higher
GenAI has created some troubling data security challenges. It compromises sensitive data in new and unexpected ways, putting a strain on the already delicate relationship between R&D and data security teams.
Why is data particularly vulnerable when it comes to GenAI?
The answer boils down to speed and volume. GenAI services are being added at a fast and furious pace, and data security teams are struggling to keep up. Often these services are deployed without the security team’s knowledge and before proper security measures are put in place. But even when GenAI services are approved, protecting the data that flows to them can pose a huge challenge in and of itself. This is because GenAI services are no ordinary service.
These ML-powered algorithms play for the big leagues, processing petabytes of data at the blink of an eye. As such, they have resulted in immense volumes of data being shared at unprecedented speed. Classifying and protecting so much data is an overwhelming battle, and it’s one that companies cannot afford to lose.
As opposed to other services, any data that flows to these AI models can potentially resurface anywhere. This is true whether the data involved reveals proprietary company code, a health record or bank account information. This makes it crucial to aggressively fence off sensitive data from GenAI services.
These dangers are not merely theoretical. Companies have already suffered the consequences of being underprepared for the GenAI revolution. These range from accidental data exposure to more sophisticated threats like model poisoning, data leakage, and supply chain attacks specifically designed to target GenAI models.
To thrive in the age of GenAI, security teams must embed robust security practices at every stage of the GenAI pipeline. This means obtaining better visibility to uncover shadow GenAI services, tracking and classifying data assets and controlling the entire data journey in real time, without missing any shadowy corners along the way.
Introducing GenAI DLP
Flow is proud to present GenAI DLP – a data loss prevention solution designed specifically for the security challenges posed by GenAI.
At Flow we believe that data security shouldn’t just be about survival. Instead of trying to keep up with technological trends, security teams should be able to thrive beside them. To do so, security teams need tools at their disposal that are just as fast and as powerful as the rapidly evolving GenAI landscape.
That’s why we created GenAI DLP – a solution that enables developers to utilize GenAI at full force, without compromising data security along the way.
Let’s dive into how it works.
Auto-discovery of all GenAI services
Flow provides companies with full visibility of all GenAI services, whether they have been approved or not.
As mentioned above, GenAI services are added at the flick of a wrist, ready to process and potentially expose hefty volumes of data. This leaves the data security team scrambling to maintain control in a wildly unpredictable and ever-changing environment. It’s like a photographer trying to get a sharp visual on a race car as it whizzes by.
This is where Flow’s unconventional technology comes in. Rather than periodically scanning data at rest, or assessing the data journey indirectly through logs, GenAI DLP analyzes the payload in runtime. This allows security teams to uncover shadow GenAI services in real time and flag sensitive data as it flows to a GenAI service.
Instead of chasing down every new GenAI service, Flow automatically monitors, identifies and maps out the entire GenAI landscape so that the security team can act before any damage is done.
Razor-sharp classification of data shared with GenAI services
Even when a GenAI service has been approved, the security team still needs to control the data that flows to it. This means getting a clear picture of the type of data involved.
If developers are going to work with GenAI services with maximum freedom and agility, without being weighed down by cumbersome security measures, the security team needs to classify sensitive data quickly and with a high degree of accuracy.
This is what Flow’s LLM-powered classification was built for. By analyzing the payload at runtime, Flow classifies sensitive data automatically. As opposed to other solutions, Flow’s classification mechanism isn’t based on indirect contextual information, but observes the data directly. This way, Flow catches any and all sensitive data shared to GenAI services, even if that data is hiding away in an unexpected field or is contained in unstructured data. Without this powerful classification technology, protecting data in a GenAI world is nearly impossible.
Proactive anomaly detection and data leak prevention
Flow monitors the entire environment and flags anomalies in real time, both in terms of data type and data volume. This allows security teams to prevent a potential data leak and immediately assess its impact – are we dealing with one sensitive record or millions?
In a world of accelerated GenAI adoption, in which new vulnerabilities can emerge quickly and unexpectedly, GenAI DLP’s early detection capabilities are vital. It is the only solution that can proactively prevent sensitive data from flowing to GenAI services, even if the security team knows nothing about them, and nip new security threats in the bud.
Out-the-box policies tailored to GenAI
With GenAI DLP, organizations can set highly customizable rules and policies that control the flow of data and determine exactly which data can flow to which GenAI service. This serves in preventing data loss in two major scenarios:
- Discovery of unauthorized GenAI services before data can flow to it.
- Tagging and protecting sensitive data that flows to authorized GenAI services.
GenAI DLP provides organizations with maximum flexibility, allowing them to tailor their security policies to their exact GenAI architecture. These robust and flexible policies can be deployed quickly, enabling companies to align with regulatory standards and continue to protect data even as their GenAI architecture expands and changes over time.
Rapid and targeted remediation
GenAI DLP is designed to make the remediation process highly informed, effective, and targeted
As opposed to other solutions, Flow does not block the flow of data or perform fixes that could negatively impact business on a wide scale. Instead, it integrates directly with existing SecOps and alerting workflows through SOAR, providing one-click remediation proposals with built-in CLI commands.
It provides the information required to resolve the issue as quickly and as efficiently as possible through the organization’s specific policies and enables teams to quickly assess the impact of the incident. This includes the full data journey, data volume and type (PCI, PII, PHI, company secrets), which internal applications were involved, data owner and the type of incident – was it a policy violation, a security threat or a regulatory issue?
These rapid response capabilities are crucial in minimizing the operational impact of security incidents, especially in the face of GenAI.
Get Ready to Embrace GenAI
Flow created GenAI DLP to tackle the formidable security challenges brought on by GenAI, so that business can continue to innovate securely.
AI is appealing, it’s powerful, and it also opens up deep cracks through which sensitive data can fall. Our solution is here to catch that data, closing the gap between security and innovation, and enabling companies to harness the power of AI with confidence and peace of mind.
We invite you to experience the future of data security with Flow’s GenAI DLP. Embrace this new era with a solution that doesn’t just keep up with technological advancements but takes an active part in shaping them.
