Data is the most prized possession anybody has in this digital era, where practically every aspect of our lives can be digitized, tracked, and logged. Companies and governments collect, store, process, and trade enormous personal information nowadays. With this, the threat of data breaches is increasing every day. Cybercriminals are continuously evolving new and sophisticated avenues to gain access to databases that contain sensitive information that they can use for malicious purposes, such as selling it on the dark web.

Every day we come across news of data breaches that impact individuals and businesses. You may have heard or read about the Equifax data breach, one of the most significant security breaches of the 21st century. In September of 2017, Equifax experienced a data breach that exposed the extremely sensitive personal information of 147 million individuals (approximately 605 million records were compromised). Despite having security measures in place, the organization was compromised because it neglected to patch a fundamental vulnerability. This demonstrates how even a minor security gap can significantly impact the security of user data.