When your business is focused on finding the best language services on the market, security might seem like a secondary concern. In reality, the close working relationship between your business and your language service provider (LSP) creates an environment where security should be one of your top concerns when comparing providers across the language industry.
LSPs with poor security fronts open the door to data breaches and other cyber threats, putting your business at risk despite your cybersecurity efforts. Your company’s security front is only as strong as its weakest link, and a careless LSP could be the source of an unprecedented crisis.
Third-party partners are a common source of security breaches
If you aren’t evaluating vendor security, it may only be a matter of time before your business is compromised. Research suggests this third-party risk is on the rise: PwC reports that the number of data breaches attributed to third-party vendors has grown by 22 percent since 2015.
For businesses operating or expanding into new markets and among multilingual consumer groups, the value of a language services partner can’t be overstated—especially when your business wants to leverage the market familiarity and experience a proven LSP can offer. As with any vendor relationship, the security efforts of that partner should be scrutinized before you start sharing sensitive business data.
LSPs may handle sensitive business data
Translation and localization can encompass a wide range of business assets, including assets containing sensitive business data meant to be kept confidential. When an LSP security breach occurs, it potentially exposes any of the data to which they have access—including data managed and stored by the LSP, as well as client-side data they can access through their system.
For some industries, such as businesses operating in the financial, legal, medical, or other fields where regulatory compliance and privacy laws are applicable, the liability of a vendor-caused breach can have significant implications beyond the immediate damages. As the owner of that data, your business could suffer repercussions for the vendor’s breach, even if you played no direct role in creating the vulnerability.
Your clients may be jeopardized by poor LSP security
Many businesses seeking a partner in the language industry are hoping to leverage those services to support their clients. Market research firms, for example, require vast translation and localization services to facilitate market research for their clients around the world.
In that scenario, a security breach affecting the LSP doesn’t only impact the market research firm. It poses a potential threat to all of that firm’s clients—and could cause permanent brand damage that jeopardizes the future of the company.
Your clients are counting on you to take security seriously when choosing your vendors. Keep this in mind when seeking out an LSP.
Prioritize security in your search for an LSP
When searching for an LSP to handle translation and other language services for your business, security should be considered alongside other key criteria, including project workflow management and quality assurance steps. Look for an LSP that prioritizes security throughout its project workflows, and can offer security certifications as proof of this commitment.
Contact us today to learn more about our industry-leading commitment to security.
