HelpScout DLP

Detect & Mask (Redact) Sensitive Help Scout Conversations - Help Scout DLP (Data Loss Prevention)

Book a Demo

HelpScout DLP

Table of Contents

TL;DR: Strac's Solution for Help Scout DLP

Customers frequently include confidential details in their Help Scout messages, potentially leading to security vulnerabilities and regulatory issues.
Strac's solution is designed for detecting & redacting sensitive data in Help Scout conversations. Strac Help Scout DLP detects and redacts/masks/hides sensitive conversations (messages) and attachments within Help Scout conversations.
With both "Detect Only" and "Redact" modes, Strac provides functionalities like redacting once the conversation is concluded.
Strac is equipped to identify and conceal a wide range of sensitive data, from personal data such as PII and PHI to payment details and more. Strac's library of sensitive data elements is flexible and supports regex customization.

The Challenge with Help Scout and its Significance:

When seeking support or assistance, customers often share sensitive personal information (like PII or PHI) in their Help Scout messages. Here's why safeguarding your Help Scout communications is paramount:

Security Vulnerabilities: Every platform is vulnerable to security threats, and Help Scout is no exception. Protecting customer data within these platforms is crucial.
Regulatory Compliance: Governments are consistently introducing consumer privacy regulations to safeguard user data from potential threats. Keeping track of and complying with these evolving regulations, especially when data is scattered across multiple platforms, is a significant challenge.
Historical Data Breaches: In recent years, multiple data breaches have affected billions of records. Such breaches expose emails and reveal passwords and other sensitive data. Organizations often take months to detect these breaches, leading to significant financial and reputational damages.
Insider Threats: Both unintentional data leaks and malicious insider threats have seen a notable rise, further emphasizing the need for effective data protection solutions.

How Strac's Redaction Solution Addresses Help Scout Concerns:

Strac's Help Scout DLP software comes with two primary modes:

Detection Only: Upon setup, it autonomously identifies sensitive messages and attachments in Help Scout conversations. Security and Customer support teams can then review these findings within the Strac UI Vault and receive alerts.
Redact: After configuration, Strac will mask or redact sensitive information, with privileged users able to review these redacted Help Scout messages in Strac's UI Vault.

For redaction purposes, organizations can define a list of sensitive data types. Audit reports detailing access patterns can be sent to Compliance, Risk, and Security officials.

Here's an illustrative list of the types of data Strac can detect and redact:

Identity: Such as Driver's License, Passport, and Social Security Numbers.
PII: Including names, email addresses, phone numbers, and more.
PHI: Covering medical record numbers, insurance IDs, and biometric data.
Financial Data: Such as bank account details, credit card numbers, and more.
Secrets: API keys, passwords, and similar confidential details.
Network Data: IP and MAC addresses.
Cryptocurrency: Including seed phrases and cryptocurrency addresses.
Customizable Rules: Create your own definitions or utilize regex for granular control.

Explore Strac's comprehensive catalog of data elements and ensure your Help Scout communications are secure and compliant.

‍

Sharepoint DLP Use Cases

Practical Scenario

A hospital’s billing and administrative teams use SharePoint Online to store patient invoices, medical reports, and insurance forms. While collaborating with external insurance providers, a staff member accidentally updates the permissions on a SharePoint document library to “Anyone with the link,” exposing potentially thousands of patient files containing PHI.

How Strac's Sharepoint DLP Helps

Continuous Data Discovery: Strac automatically scans existing and newly uploaded documents, identifying PHI (e.g., medical record numbers, Social Security Numbers).
Classification & Labeling: Once identified, files are labeled (e.g., “HIPAA Sensitive”), ensuring that administrators know which documents require the highest level of protection.
Visibility into Access: Strac provides real-time insight into who has access to these sensitive documents. Administrators can instantly see if unauthorized users or broad groups have viewing rights.
Revoke Public Links: If a file is publicly accessible, Strac immediately revokes those links and restores restricted access.
Alerts & Quarantines: When someone attempts to share PHI externally, Strac can alert admins, quarantine the file for review, or completely block the action.
Audit-Ready Reports: All actions are logged, enabling quick incident response and demonstrating HIPAA compliance for audits.

Practical Scenario

A mid-sized investment firm uses SharePoint to collaborate on various client files, including:

Credit card statements (subject to PCI-DSS)
ID documents (Driver’s Licenses, Passports, etc.) used for KYC (Know Your Customer) verification
Banking information such as account and routing numbers

An associate accidentally shares a SharePoint folder containing these files with a newly onboarded client who does not require access to all confidential documents. This folder is also accessible to several internal teams outside the immediate project, creating multiple potential exposure points.

How Strac's Sharepoint DLP Helps

Comprehensive Data Discovery: Strac scans both existing and newly uploaded documents in SharePoint for sensitive information such as credit card numbers, bank account details, and ID documents (Driver’s License, Passport formats).
Classification & Automated Labeling: Once identified, Strac applies meaningful labels (e.g., “PCI-DSS Sensitive,” “PII – ID Documents,” “Banking Info”) to ensure these files stand out and are subject to stricter security rules.
Visibility into Access: Strac provides an immediate view of who currently has access to these sensitive files. This allows admins to spot situations where external clients or internal teams unnecessarily have permissions.
Public Access Revocation: If a labeled document (e.g., containing card data or ID scans) is found to be publicly shared or too broadly accessible, Strac automatically revokes these links or permissions, aligning access with the principle of least privilege.
Alerts, Quarantines, and Blocks: When a user attempts to share a labeled document with outside domains—or with an entire department—Strac alerts administrators or quarantines/blocks the file share, depending on policy settings.
In cases where the share is intentional but needs review, admins can approve or deny the request within Strac’s dashboard.
Audit & Compliance: Every sharing event, label assignment, and access revocation is logged, creating a detailed audit trail. This helps demonstrate compliance with PCI-DSS, KYC, AML, and other regulatory requirements.
Automatic reporting simplifies any regulatory or internal compliance audit, reducing the administrative burden on security and compliance teams.

Practical Scenario

A software company keeps source code, product roadmaps, and design specs in SharePoint. Several teams—including external contractors—use the same SharePoint site. A developer accidentally grants a large group, including some non-disclosure–exempt contractors, access to a folder containing patent-pending code.

How Strac's Sharepoint DLP Helps

Holistic File Scanning: Strac inspects documents, PDFs, and archives for code snippets, system designs, and proprietary business terms to detect potential IP.
Intelligent Labeling: Documents identified as containing IP or trade secrets are automatically classified (e.g., “Proprietary IP”), reinforcing the need for restricted sharing.
Real-Time Access Insights: With Strac, administrators can instantly see who has access to IP-tagged files, enabling them to remove unauthorized users or reduce permission scopes.
Immediate Link Removal: If a contractor or external partner is mistakenly granted access to IP, Strac revokes public or unauthorized sharing before the files can be downloaded.
Alerts & Blocking: Strac’s policies can be configured to alert security teams or block external sharing attempts for files containing proprietary content.
Incident Response & Auditing: Detailed logs of every share request, label change, and access revocation aid in quick incident resolution and help prove due diligence if legal issues arise.