Data is key in driving the usage of any SaaS (Software as a Service)-based application. Data also ensures that there are no gaps in terms of usage experience. Every user/employee wants a seamless process when they use any mobile or web application. Pre-loaded data ensures that the application works smoothly. Businesses share critical financial information with partner vendors who set up applications to help improve the ‘ease of doing business’ quotient. Therefore, the importance of data security in travel & expense cannot be overstated.
The business travel & expense industry is now shifting to a software backed landscape. Hence, it’s of utmost priority to strategize how we can protect the data from any external attack or contingency.
Data is the basic building block of an organization just like employees, infrastructure etc. Any organization’s most valuable asset is its users’ data and records. In simple words, the meaning of data security is the protection of an organization’s data against unauthorized access or modification in order to maintain its integrity, confidentiality, and availability.
Travel & Expense companies generally require two types of data inputs to ensure a smooth travel booking and expense filing process.
Other information such as frequent flyer number, although neither a mandatory input nor a personal identifier, could still be added to make a user’s travel booking and expense filing journey convenient.
All of this data flows seamlessly between multiple systems, as shown below, in order to provide a fully integrated travel & expense management platform to you.
Ensuring the security of both the Employee PII data and the company data should be one of the key mandates for any Travel & Expense company. At ITILITE, we make it our top priority to protect the data and information that our 300+ clientele has entrusted us with.
We provide end-to-end encryption on all their information, especially banking and credit card data. In addition to this, ITILITE also takes care of server configuration, patching, logging infrastructure, incident detection, and response. These are some of the services which companies have to otherwise employ their internal teams to manage. Chief Trust Officers at several companies in the past have listed this as one of the ancillary benefits of being associated with ITILITE.
When we first started out in our journey to gather our customer data, one of the ruling directives of the founders was to establish a dedicated ISMS (Information Security Management System) Team that sets direction, policy, analysing and advisory on how to manage data security risks along with user access management. This team is also in-charge of information security awareness & training for the rest of the organization.
The leadership team at the company has also formed another committee called ERMC (Enterprise Risk Management Committee). This team reviews security incidents, reviews and approves data security objectives and checks effectiveness of security implementation of controls.
The onboarding program for developers at ITILITE includes training in secure coding. They have been trained on Open Web Application Security Project® (OWASP), Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) and mitigation methodologies. This ensures stringent security protocols on our Secure Software Development Life Cycle (SSDLC). Follow-up sessions are also done to make sure they are at the top of their game on any given day.
Our Quality Assurance (QA) team does timely checks on suitability, performance and stability before the features are released. Best practices for data security and for ensuring data privacy are embedded in every feature release cycle.
An incident could be anything. For example – Multiple failed login attempts or multiple attempts on credit card pin inputs. ITILITE follows a thorough incident monitoring process that includes log monitoring, file monitoring, security groups, configurations, audit trails etc.
While onboarding any vendor that helps us provide a more convenient user experience, each vendor’s data security practices are evaluated. Also, contractual measures are used to ensure that all data security practices are followed. The performance of every vendor is evaluated annually.
We strive to continually enhance the security, the technicality, and the organizational measures that protect sensitive information shared with us. Our comprehensive security programs are dedicated to all aspects of security. With the highest regard to industry compliance, we hold trusted security certifications. Some of the top-drawer security certifications we can boast about are:
Our client’s data is stored with AES 256-bit encryption with 1,024-bit key-strength for data at Rest and FIPS 140-2 compliant TLS v 1.2 encryption for data in transit. AES algorithms are almost impossible to crack, with longer key lengths offering additional protection. TLS algorithms ensure data retains its integrity during transition and helps provide confidentiality through encryption.
Additionally, Role-based access through an explicit need-to-know basis policy and two-factor authentication (2FA) is available. This ensures that the client data is secured and is accessible only to a select group of people.
Our highly resilient product architecture with n+1 component redundancy, and periodic backups keeps us ready for all sorts of calamities be it man-made or natural. The best proof of that was during the Covid-19 pandemic, when our product not only sustained but thrived and delivered seamless services to our clients.
ITILITE is the safest haven for travel & expense management. The ISMS and ERMC teams work day and night to ensure all safety protocols are followed to the dot. With the highest compliance levels of compliance in the industry for security of application data, credit cards and employee personal data coupled with a multi-level approach to protection, your travel & expense data cannot be in safer hands.
Get ITILITE today by requesting for a demo below and automate your travel & expense management processes, while keeping all your data fool-proof.
Subscribe to the Itilite blog and never miss a post!