DSPM is a security solution that enables enterprises to discover and classify structured and unstructured data across file storage locations, such as cloud applications or on-premises. It also helps to proactively address incident remediation.

Structured and unstructured data is littered across Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) applications, Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) locations and on-premises storage, making it difficult to get a handle on where the most important and sensitive information is. DSPM provides the visibility and control needed to secure this complex environment.

DSPM continuously discovers data across cloud, network and on-premises storage to uncover and catalog every piece of data your organization has. Finding sensitive data is the crucial first step in protecting it. DSPM solutions scan your entire data ecosystem such as:

• Cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP)
• SaaS applications (Microsoft 365, Salesforce)
• On-premises storage and databases

Modern DSPM software maintains continuous visibility as data moves and changes through built-in functionality or solution integrations.

Once discovered, data must be categorized and evaluated for risk exposure. Modern DSPM solutions typically employ advanced AI-driven techniques in this critical phase:

• AI detectors identify regulated information (SSNs, credit cards, health records) and proprietary data using sophisticated recognition capabilities that surpass traditional pattern matching approaches.
• AI summarizers analyze contextual signals like location, access patterns, user behavior and business relevance to understand data meaning and usage.
• Rich classification assignment provides comprehensive data insights that extend well beyond basic Public/Internal/Confidential/Restricted labels, delivering detailed information about file content, business context, regulatory implications and specific risk factors.

These advanced classifications are then combined with protection controls, access permissions and compliance requirements to generate dynamic risk scores. AI-powered classification has become a baseline functionality for usable DSPM platforms, with modern solutions leveraging multiple AI types working together including GenAI, deep neural network classifiers and specialized detection engines to continuously improve both classification accuracy and risk assessment.

Identifying issues without resolution creates little value. Modern DSPM platforms bridge this gap with customizable controls that adapt to your organization's unique needs and challenges. These controls include permissions management to implement the Principle of Least Privilege (PoLP), ensuring users only access files required for their tasks and addressing over-permissioned or publicly accessible data. Additional capabilities include data mapping to properly categorize sensitive information, mislocated data remediation to address files stored in inappropriate repositories and data archiving/deletion workflows for managing at-risk files past retention periods or classified as ROT (redundant, obsolete, trivial).

DSPM solutions include reporting and analytics tools that provide visibility into an organization's overall data security status. These reporting capabilities typically feature dashboards showing where sensitive data exists across environments, highlighting specific risk factors such as ROT (redundant, obsolete, trivial) data, over-permissioned files, mislocated information and duplicated content. Security teams can use these insights to track metrics over time and prioritize remediation efforts where they'll have the greatest impact.

DSPM solutions offer flexible implementation options:

• Cloud-native SaaS for rapid deployment
• Hybrid models for sensitive environments
• On-premises for control over data sovereignty
• Agentless architectures to minimize overhead

Most enterprises start with their most critical data repositories and expand coverage incrementally.

Automation enables continuous, large-scale data discovery and scanning across enterprise environments. Organizations can now automatically classify data in real-time as it's created, moved or modified—eliminating the delays and gaps inherent in manual reviews. Artificial intelligence's primary value lies in delivering highly accurate data classification while reducing false positives. AI brings the precision needed to confidently distinguish between truly sensitive data and benign information that might trigger traditional rule-based systems. For DSPM solutions to confidently incorporate these capabilities, modern solutions must handle a wide range of file types, from PDFs to video, as well as understand an even broader array of data fields to assign correct classifications and adjust for compliance requirements. This includes leveraging GenAI capabilities, deep neural network classifiers and other predictive AI technologies working together.

The benefits of Data Security Posture Management can boil down to four outcomes:

• Increase productivity
• Cut costs
• Reduce risk
• Streamline compliance

DSPM rarely operates in isolation. Most organizations integrate it with complementary security technologies to create a comprehensive data protection strategy. The insights DSPM software provides about data location, sensitivity and risk naturally enhance other security tools such as:

• Data Detection and Response (DDR)
• Data Loss Prevention (DLP)
• Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB)
• Identity and Access Management (IAM)
• Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM)

Unlike traditional tools that work with known data repositories using predefined rules, DSPM continuously discovers both known and unknown data across environments, leveraging AI for more accurate classification and providing context about access patterns and security controls.

Because successful DSPM deployment requires collaboration beyond security teams, many organizations establish a data risk committee to regularly review DSPM insights and coordinate remediation efforts. This could include IT infrastructure managers, data governance specialists, compliance officers and business unit representatives who understand departmental data value.

You can track metrics such as reduction in sensitive data exposure (attack surface reduction), time savings in data discovery processes, improvements in mean-time-to-remediate incidents and reductions in storage costs from eliminating redundant or obsolete data.