Unstructured data is everywhere. Its on your file shares, your NAS devices, your UNIX shared directories. Office documents, images, CAD drawings, and virtually everything that isn't wrapped up into some type of database fills up these spaces with "unstructured" information.

The problem with this kind of data on these types of mediums is in keeping their permissions correctly assigned over time. With a dynamic workforce and a never-ending pattern of growth, managing permissions is a challenge. Making the job even harder are the native tools made available for visualizing and modifying permissions on this data. They're great for a few changes here and there, but intolerable when data storage gets beyond even just a few folders.

In this podcast, I talk with Raphael Reich of Varonis about the problems of managing unstructured data with and how third party products are necessary to ensure it is protected. With the right products in place, you can visualize permissions all across a data share, you can see where data is being used and where its being left untouched. And, using tools from Varonis, you can even wipe your hands from the daily tasks of managing data permissions, leaving it to the data owners themselves -- a transfer of responsibility that many consider one of the holy grails of IT administration.

Raphael's got a great story to tell, and one that you should consider listening to if you tire of the constant battle of resetting permissions.