Ensuring Smooth Sailing: Why Strong Data Security is Important in Fleet Management Operations

Working with solutions that prioritize customer data security can mean the difference between safety and a breach.

In 2023, the average cost of a data breach worldwide was $4.45 million, according to IBM’s annual report. This number is 15% more than in the past three years and is only increasing. This is the cost of poor cybersecurity. 

When a company is SOC II certified, it means it’s a company you can trust. At GPS Insight, we excel in tackling your challenges through our advanced real-time tracking solution, ensuring the safety and security of your data. With a robust system of over 100 internal controls, we safeguard client data by fulfilling all five trust service criteria with stringent data security measures. 

So, why is strong cybersecurity important in fleet management operations? What does data security have to do with fleet operations, fleet vehicles, or fleet management systems? 

When a customer trusts you with sensitive data, you need to take its protection seriously and ensure your frameworks are compliant with established protocols. And sometimes data leaks aren’t due to security vulnerabilities – sometimes they’re due to negligence. 

Here’s what happens when a provider is either not certified with strong data protection, or not cautious enough to avoid cyber threats: 

1. GPS Tracking

In 2021, a family-tracking app was found to have been actively selling user information without user knowledge or consent, leading to a 2023 class-action lawsuit. The prosecution alleges that precise locations of millions of users were sold to about a dozen location data brokers, “including places of religious worship, places that may be used to infer an LGBTQ+ identification, domestic abuse shelters, medical facilities, and welfare and homeless shelters,” according to the suit.  

2. Technology

One of the biggest technology production companies experienced a breach that allowed hackers to gain unauthorized access to the email information of customers from over 30,000 businesses in 2021. This breach was due to a security hole, or a “zero-day vulnerability.” This hole, defined by being unknown to developers and anti-virus software, was taken advantage of by the large-scale cyber-attack.  

3. Cloud-Based Networks

In 2022, a cloud-based streaming service issued password-reset notices to over 30 million users after hackers accessed emails, usernames, and encrypted passwords from platform users due to an unpatched vulnerability. A few months prior, a mobile payment service app experienced a breach by a former employee, who downloaded 8 million user information including customer names, brokerage account numbers, and more. The breach highlighted the company’s inability to implement access control policies.

4. Social Media

Social media platforms are no strangers to data leaks and breaches. Staying up to date with the latest cybersecurity news on your social platform of choice is an important habit for users to develop. The infamous news of Cambridge Analytica stealing and selling Facebook user data leads to all eyes on all third-party platforms with access to sensitive user information.

5. Banking

In 2019, one hacker was able to gain unauthorized access to names, addresses, account numbers and balances, credit scores, and social security numbers from over 100 million customers of an international bank – all thanks to a cloud firewall configuration vulnerability. The hack cost the bank $190 million in a class-action lawsuit, which could have been prevented with multi-factor authentication processes and segmented network security.  here where you want it,” said Sam Leow, shop manager at Alten Construction. “It’s easy to get the reports you need.”

The cost of data security doesn’t have to be millions of dollars in financial losses. Operational costs and customer metrics don’t need to suffer when the functionality of cybersecurity is up to par with the industry’s standards.  

Protecting against malware is paramount for stewards of customer data. GPS Insight is dedicated to proving that we’re one to trust. Having strong security features as part of an overall certified security system can make or break a company’s relationship with customers. Keeping up with software updates, using strong passwords, and using multi-factor authentication are small steps to prevent security threats, especially in the world of vehicle tracking. 

GPS Insight has earned SOC II certification, which means we meet strict cybersecurity standards that are globally established. This certification ensures we keep customer information safe and secure alongside their fleet of vehicles. We also make sure to follow privacy regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and the California Consumer Protection Act (CCPA), which protects customer information when it’s transferred between the EU and the US, or domestically within the US. Our robust security measures ensure the protection of our customers’ sensitive information in accordance with the highest security requirements. 

Data management is critical for handling sensitive information in the telematics industry. Fleet data, which can range from real-time location, real-time data points, and other personal data all come up in fleet tracking. Fleet management companies touting their fleet management solutions need to highlight their cybersecurity protocols, alongside their fleet management software. 

Any telematics solution will only cause more problems if your data isn’t secure. With GPS Insight, rest assured that only authorized personnel, including you and your team, have access to sensitive client information.