Cybersecurity Glossary
Data Exfiltration
The act of moving stolen data out of your environment.
What Data Exfiltration means
Exfiltration is the stage where data leaves. It may go through cloud storage services, an encrypted tunnel, a personal mailbox or a synchronisation client, usually in small amounts to avoid attracting attention. Modern ransomware groups exfiltrate first and encrypt afterwards, so the copy exists before you notice anything.
Why Data Exfiltration matters for small businesses and nonprofits
It is the point at which an intrusion becomes a reportable breach. Detecting it depends on watching outbound traffic and on noticing that an account is reading far more than it usually does.
What to do about Data Exfiltration
- Monitor outbound volume and destinations, not only inbound traffic
- Restrict access to bulk export and download functions
- Alert when an account accesses an unusually large number of files
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