Secure Departmental Data Storage

The following best practice is recommended by Information Services for secure departmental data storage.

These practices are already being used by some departments.

Store your data centrally

Data should be stored on central file servers or SharePoint. This means the data will be properly backed up and secured by requiring a login (user name and password).

Information Services offer the following means of achieving this:

• SharePoint
  Useful for storing and collaborating on documents. Find out more about SharePoint at http://www.inf.aber.ac.uk/advisory/faq/218/
• Departmental Filestore
  Useful for storing high volumes of data. Find out more about departmental storage services at http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/is/computers/serverrooms/.
• Individual File store
  Individuals can store their data on their own personal central file store area. For more information see http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/is/computers/filestore/

Ensure your departmental computers are on the STAFF domain

If your staff office computers are on the STAFF domain they are more secure as they require a user name and password to log in, they are kept up-to-date with software patches and anti-malware software. Computers on the STAFF domain can also be managed by policies (e.g. preventing access to the local hard drives, ensuring that files are saved centrally).

To check whether your computer is on the staff domain please see our FAQ. To ask for your computer to be put on the staff domain please contact our Customer Services Team

Encrypt your documents

Sensitive data sent by email, stored on removable USB storage, or held on laptops should be encrypted. You can find instructions for doing this in our security FAQs

Advice

If you would  like further advice or to discuss your requirements please contact our Customer Services Team in the first instance.