What's the Difference Between DSPM, CSPM, and SSPM?

In the rapidly evolving landscape of complex multicloud environments, securing cloud infrastructure, sensitive data, and applications has become a critical concern. Yet traditional security measures often fall short in addressing the unique challenges posed by multicloud environments.

The recent rise in data breaches shows that data security must be a priority. Getting a clear picture of where data lives—and how it is stored, classified, and secured—needs to be part of an organization's overall cloud security strategy.

To effectively secure multicloud environments and their data, organizations need a comprehensive approach that delivers multiple layers of protection at scale.

This article explores the role of data security posture management (DSPM) in securing multicloud environments, and how it differs from existing cloud security solutions that offer multilayer security, such as cloud security posture management (CSPM) and SaaS security posture management (SSPM).

What is DSPM?

DSPM is specifically tailored to protect sensitive data stored in the cloud. Going beyond conventional security measures, it proactively identifies and mitigates risks unique to data in cloud environments.

While traditional approaches mainly focus on network and perimeter security, DSPM offers organizations unparalleled visibility and control over their sensitive data. With this, organizations are able to more quickly identify and remediate risks, helping them preserve the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of their data.

DSPM also helps organizations comply with data protection regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), reducing the risk of fines and reputational damage.

What is CSPM?

CSPM solutions monitor clouds and cloud infrastructure for vulnerabilities in cloud services, web applications, and resources. They also provide visibility and policy enforcement to reduce overall risk.

What is SSPM?

SSPM unifies continuous risk assessment and compliance monitoring with detection, enforcement, and remediation to secure SaaS apps and data. By providing critical visibility into the security posture of an organization's SaaS deployments, it helps to accelerate and streamline operations.

DSPM vs. CSPM vs. SSPM

DSPM, CSPM, and SSPM all help organizations protect their cloud deployments, data, and applications. However, each solution has its own unique strengths and limitations. Understanding these is key for organizations devising a comprehensive cloud security strategy. Let's take a closer look at these three solutions to see where they differ, and what they have in common.

Key differences between DSPM and CSPM

Cloud security posture management (CSPM) is a critical component of protecting cloud infrastructure. It provides visibility into cloud assets, helps detect misconfigurations, and ensures compliance with security standards. It also regularly monitors the cloud environment to enable swift response to potential threats. Neglecting CSPM can lead to open vulnerabilities for attackers to exploit, as well as undetected security threats that could let bad actors steal sensitive data.

DSPM focuses on securing the data that flows through cloud infrastructure. It helps organizations identify and protect sensitive data, detect and respond to breaches, and comply with data protection regulations.

In short: DSPM provides the visibility and control needed to secure sensitive data in the cloud, while CSPM secures the cloud infrastructure itself.

Key differences between DSPM and SSPM

The main purpose of SSPM is to safeguard the use of SaaS apps by detecting potential hazards, such as data exposure or excessive permissions, and upholding SaaS security standards. It also helps protect identities, particularly for remote workers. SSPM guarantees that only authorized individuals can access essential apps, and monitors their actions to prevent security breaches.

In summary, SSPM offers supervision and authority for security teams to effectively secure SaaS environments, safeguarding important data and ensuring adherence to regulations.

DSPM solutions focus on discovering and classifying data, whether in the cloud or elsewhere, while consistently monitoring for potential data risks. The most effective ones utilize AI to automate these processes as well as implement suitable protective measures.

When to use DSPM vs. CSPM and SSPM

When choosing a cloud security solution, it is important to consider your organization's security needs. Some organizations may only need a basic level of cloud security, while others may need a more comprehensive solution to secure sensitive data.

Using DSPM together with other security could help your organization build a comprehensive security posture for both cloud infrastructure and data protection, reducing your overall attack surface and the risk of a data breach or other security incident.

What is the risk of not having DSPM?

Without either of these in place, you may be left exposed to critical risks that could result in data leaks or compromise of your cloud environments.

Leaving CSPM or SSPM out of the equation could lead to misconfigurations, excessive entitlements, or vulnerabilities, allowing bad actors to exploit weaknesses and security threats to go undetected for a long time.

Without either of these or DSPM, you also run the risk of noncompliance with regulations like GDPR or HIPAA, which could lead to huge financial and reputational losses.

How Zscaler can help

If you’re not sure which cloud security solution is right for you, contact a Zscaler security expert. We can help you assess your unique security needs and recommend the most effective solution.

Ready to enhance your cloud data security with DSPM? Schedule a demo to see how Zscaler DSPM can help protect your data and cloud environment while complementing your existing security stack.