Guardians of the Data | The Biggest Data Security Challenges of 2025 - Guardians of the Data

The Biggest Data Security Challenges of 2025 - Guardians of the Data - Episode #22

December 23, 2025 / 30:53/E22

What are the biggest challenges data leaders are facing?

Today, we run back some of the best conversations of the year. Ward brings together insights from data security, privacy, and governance leaders across industries to answer one foundational question: What is the biggest challenge organizations are facing when it comes to data security?

From data classification to data sprawl, to even knowing what data you have, we cover it all in this episode.

Featuring: Rick DeLoach, Daley Varghese, Hans Vargas, Bryan DeLuca, Trevor Dolan, Luis Valenzuela, and Christian Ghigliotty.

Takeaways:

Know Your Data: Conduct a thorough inventory and classification of your data assets.
Establish Strong Governance: Develop clear, practical data governance policies and procedures. Involve legal, privacy, and business stakeholders in defining standards.
Assess and Address Risks: Regularly perform risk assessments for new and existing data uses and understand who has access to what.
Balance Technology with Process: Don’t rely solely on tools. Ensure you have the right processes and people in place.
Educate and Empower: Provide ongoing training and awareness for all employees, not just annual modules. Embed “champions” or advocates for data security and privacy throughout the organization.
Continuously Improve: Create feedback loops to refine policies, processes, and technology over time.
Adapt to Change: Be proactive in adapting to new challenges like remote work, AI, and cloud adoption. Stay curious and seek out passionate partners across the organization.

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