The rising occurrence of SaaS data breaches has emerged as a major concern for businesses globally. A report from AppOmni reveals that 31% of organizations experienced a SaaS data breach in 2024, marking a notable increase from the previous year. These breaches present significant risks, especially as many businesses underestimate the complexity of their SaaS environments. In Massachusetts and beyond, companies like Synivate are essential in helping organizations enhance their SaaS security and maintain business continuity through proactive and managed services.

Many security teams concentrate primarily on technical issues, often neglecting the impact that company culture—its daily practices, attitudes, and default policy enforcement—has on overall security. Overconfidence, unclear roles, and insufficient continuous monitoring can contribute to SaaS security breaches. It’s essential to foster a culture that emphasizes shared responsibility and proactive security to strengthen organizational defenses.

What Makes SaaS Environments Vulnerable?

A major factor driving the increase in SaaS data breaches is the widespread underestimation of the complexity of SaaS ecosystems. According to an AppOmni report, 49% of respondents believed they had fewer than 10 SaaS applications connected to their Microsoft 365 platform, but aggregated data revealed that actual SaaS-to-SaaS connections often exceeded 1,000 per deployment. This gap underscores the limited visibility many businesses have over their SaaS networks, creating security blind spots.

Without proper oversight and control, businesses become vulnerable to cyberattacks. Many organizations fail to implement strong security measures for their SaaS platforms, leaving exploitable gaps. This issue is compounded by unclear accountability for SaaS security. Half of the professionals surveyed believed the responsibility lies with the app’s business owner, while others felt it should be shared with the cybersecurity team.

This confusion is a critical oversight, especially given the growing sophistication of cyberattacks targeting SaaS platforms. As businesses increasingly rely on SaaS applications for daily operations, the need for clear security protocols and dedicated oversight becomes more urgent.

Cyber Incidents on SaaS Vulnerabilities

An AppOmni survey of security decision-makers highlights a 5% rise in data breaches over the past year, with 31% of organizations reporting incidents. A key contributor appears to be the culture of SaaS security, which has led to breaches like those at Snowflake and Sisense. In these cases, decentralized SaaS adoption limited visibility and control over third-party integrations, which created vulnerabilities such as inadequate two-factor authentication. To counter this, organizations need a holistic, security-conscious culture that permeates all business units, not just IT.

This culture shift goes beyond policy implementation; it involves reshaping mindsets to make security an integrated part of business decisions, especially when adopting new tools. Effective collaboration between security and business teams can provide guidance that supports innovation without compromising security. This balance between autonomy and secure practices is essential for building a resilient, productive environment where security and innovation can coexist.

SaaS Cyber Security Risks

Cybersecurity risks your organization should account for when utilizing SaaS services include:

Cloud Misconfigurations

Since SaaS environments operate in the public cloud, organizations must address the specific cyber threats associated with cloud applications.

Cloud misconfigurations, such as failing to secure the environment properly, can lead to data compromises. These lapses in security create vulnerabilities to threats like cloud leaks, ransomware, malware, phishing, external hackers, and insider threats. One common misconfiguration is assigning excessive permissions, where administrators grant too many access rights to end-users, widening security risks and increasing the chances of data breaches and insider threats.

A notable case of cloud misconfiguration involved Amazon Web Services (AWS) and its default public access settings for S3 buckets. Besides these provider-side issues, organizations must evaluate their internal security practices; Gartner forecasts that by 2025, 99% of cloud security failures will result from customer missteps. Another example is the Microsoft Power Apps data leak, where UpGuard researchers found that misconfigured OData APIs exposed 38 million records from 47 organizations.

Third-Party Risk

SaaS services bring third-party risk to organizations, given that many SaaS providers access sensitive data, such as PII, adding to the organization’s attack surface. While third parties like contracted janitorial staff may pose minimal risks, SaaS vendors require closer scrutiny as they handle critical information assets. Organizations may maintain strict internal security protocols, but they’re vulnerable if third-party security is weak. To safeguard data effectively, implementing a Vendor Risk Management (VRM) program with continuous monitoring helps track and mitigate SaaS vendors’ cyber risks, reinforcing the supply chain’s overall security.

Supply Chain Attacks

A supply chain attack targets organizations through security gaps in their supply chain, often due to a vendor’s inadequate security practices. Attackers may exploit vulnerabilities in a vendor’s software source code, update processes, or build systems. For instance, the largest cyber attack on the U.S. government occurred through an IT update from SolarWinds, a SaaS vendor. Strong internal security alone isn’t enough; organizations need clear visibility across their vendor ecosystem to detect and address supply chain vulnerabilities before they’re exploited.

Zero Day Vulnerabilities

Attackers often exploit vulnerabilities in SaaS applications, leading to data breaches and data loss. Zero-day vulnerabilities in widely used platforms can disrupt numerous organizations, potentially causing extensive operational shutdowns. For instance, Accellion’s file-sharing system (FTA) was compromised in 2020 through web shell attacks and zero-day exploits, resulting in data breaches for over 100 customers and significant operational disruptions. To prevent such incidents, organizations must promptly detect and address vulnerabilities in their SaaS applications to avoid risks from delayed remediation.

Insufficient Due Deligience

Vendor due diligence is a comprehensive evaluation of a potential vendor before sharing sensitive data. It confirms the vendor’s security and regulatory compliance, identifies risks, and allows for remediation requests before the partnership. Often, organizations only assess vendors during onboarding, which may leave gaps in security. If a SaaS vendor experiences a breach, attackers could access your data, placing the burden on your organization to manage regulatory, financial, and reputational impacts. Implementing a structured Vendor Risk Management program helps security teams monitor each vendor’s security posture continuously to mitigate risks effectively.

How to Create SaaS Security Culture for Future?

As the adoption of SaaS continues to increase, maintaining robust security becomes increasingly complex. Looking towards 2025 and beyond, it’s evident that relying solely on technology will not suffice. Organizations must prioritize cultivating a security culture that is integrated into all aspects of their operations.

Spend Smartly for Better Security

It begins with strategic spending. Teams recognize the importance of cost efficiency in their security programs, with 29% expecting discussions around ROI from cybersecurity investments—measured by risk reduction—to be significant next year. To remain proactive, companies should safeguard their most vital assets, employ advanced tools for monitoring access and configurations, and implement zero-trust principles across their applications.

Security is Primarily about people, not just technology

Ultimately, security goes beyond just tools and technology; it fundamentally involves people. Fostering a culture where every employee recognizes the importance of security is essential. Ongoing education about cybersecurity best practices will encourage adherence to policies and help prevent data breaches. As organizations prepare for the future, aligning their culture with effective security practices will be crucial for minimizing risks and ensuring overall security.

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The post 49% of Enterprises Fail to Identify SaaS Vulnerabilities appeared first on Kratikal Blogs.

*** This is a Security Bloggers Network syndicated blog from Kratikal Blogs authored by Shikha Dhingra. Read the original post at: https://kratikal.com/blog/49-of-enterprises-fail-to-identify-saas-vulnerabilities/