Fortinet's AI-Enhanced Tools Strengthen Data Security Posture

Fortinet^® (NASDAQ: FTNT), the global cybersecurity leader driving the convergence of networking and security, today announced the general availability of FortiDLP, a next-generation data loss prevention (DLP) and insider risk management solution. Based on Next DLP’s innovative technology and integration into the Fortinet Security Fabric, the new solution bolsters Fortinet’s overall portfolio of DLP capabilities. FortiDLP enables effective management of data security, dynamic enforcement of data protection, and enhanced visibility of insider threats at scale for large enterprise customers.

“In an era when data protection is paramount, FortiDLP offers a next-gen solution that combines AI-enhanced detection and insider risk management to secure sensitive information,” said John Maddison, chief marketing officer at Fortinet. “By leveraging an AI-powered data protection solution with the help of generative AI, security teams can anticipate risks, streamline incident response, and mitigate threats faster than legacy DLP solutions. Protecting your data from both internal and external threats starts with visibility and proactive prevention, and FortiDLP delivers that protection on day one."

Traditional DLP Solutions Fall Short for CISOs

Gartner^® recently predicted in its latest Market Guide for Data Loss Prevention that, “By 2027, 70% of CISOs in larger enterprises will adopt a consolidated approach to address both insider risk and data exfiltration use cases.” However, CISOs and security teams continue to struggle with traditional DLP challenges, like managing data silos and dispersed data with a growing hybrid workforce, navigating cumbersome and rigid policies to classify data, slow performance of legacy tools, and the increasing risk posed by malicious insiders having access to sensitive data.

What Sets FortiDLP Apart from Legacy DLP Solutions

Fortinet’s answer to traditional DLP challenges is FortiDLP, an AI-enhanced, cloud-native endpoint data protection solution that enables customers to address all their data protection requirements with a single solution. With the recent acquisition of Next DLP, Fortinet adds a powerful data protection solution to the Fortinet Security Fabric, giving security teams a more effective way to prevent data leaks and loss, detect behaviour-related threats, train employees to make risk-informed decisions and comply with security policies. The solution also addresses employees’ use of unsanctioned SaaS applications and guards against data leakage when employees use shadow AI (unapproved GenAI tools). Some of the key features that set FortiDLP apart from the competition include:

● Shadow AI Data Protection: FortiDLP enables employees to safely use publicly available GenAI tools, such as OpenAI ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and others. Administrators can set policy actions to alert employees to proper data handling practices while allowing them to continue using these tools. The result is a balance between enabling greater productivity while securing the organization against sharing sensitive corporate data with these tools.

● Day One Data Visibility and Protection: FortiDLP provides automated data movement visibility and protection from day one with out-of-the-box policies and machine learning embedded at the endpoint for baselining, with contextual and content inspection that works even if endpoints are disconnected from the network. 

● Insider Risk Protection: FortiDLP can identify actions, behaviours, and other indicators and apply appropriate policy actions to identify and stop insiders from disclosing sensitive data outside of the organization. Security teams can also monitor individual user risk with the solution by identifying, analyzing, and capturing employee activity when sensitive data is accessed and/or policies are violated.

● SaaS Application Data Protection: FortiDLP provides comprehensive visibility into user interactions with data in the cloud and maintains protection as data moves out of the cloud. The solution builds a comprehensive risk-scored inventory of SaaS applications utilized across an organization, with insights into data ingress, egress, and credentials. It also fortifies defenses against potential data breaches from business data exposure via unauthorized application usage. 

● Origin-Based Data Protection: FortiDLP provides instant visibility into data exposure risk with Secure Data Flow, which complements traditional content and sensitivity classification-based approaches with origin-based data identification, manipulation detection, and data egress controls. Security teams can track and prevent data egress from endpoints and unmanaged mobile devices to USB drives, printers, and SaaS apps like Slack, Office 365, and Google Workspace.

● Risk-Informed User Education: Administrators can configure policies and actions that include the presentation of customizable messages to educate users on the importance of safeguarding sensitive data while also enabling mechanisms that drive accountability for employee behaviour.

● AI-Powered Guidance: The FortiDLP AI-powered assistant enhances incident analysis by using FortiAI to summarize and contextualize data associated with observed high-risk activity, mapped to the MITRE Engenuity Insider Threat Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTP) Knowledge Base for easy consumption by analysts and peers.

As part of its ongoing commitment to offering customers enterprise-grade data protection, Fortinet plans to sell FortiDLP as a stand-alone solution in addition to adding advanced AI-driven data loss prevention capabilities to its security service edge (SSE) offering and integrate additional insider risk and data protection capabilities across the Fortinet Security Fabric. FortiDLP is based on the next-generation, cloud-native SaaS data protection platform from Next DLP.