Recruiters and HR professionals safeguard some of the most sensitive information any organization collects. Yet, daily demands like sourcing candidates and selecting the best ones to fill open positions can push data protection concerns into the background.
Neglecting to protect sensitive candidate and recruitment data carries far-reaching regulatory and reputational consequences. To that end, this overview provides common security gaps that expose this data and how to identify them.
Poorly Secured Data Storage
Recruitment and HR tasks generate large volumes of data. CVs, employment histories, references, etc., all need to be encrypted and stored safely.
However, it’s far too common for this data or copies of it to be stored in spreadsheets, text files, email attachments, and other sources that lack adequate safeguards.
Even properly stored data is often collected without justifiable need or retained unnecessarily. Clear retention periods and keeping data collection to viable minimums reduce exposure risks.
Third-Party Recruitment Platforms
It’s become common for companies to outsource large parts of the recruitment process. Having others handle background checks, assessment tests, or interview scheduling heightens supply chain risk. Your company’s HR team might follow best practices, yet still be responsible for security oversights if candidate data becomes exposed due to third parties’ more vulnerable systems.
Minimizing associated risks involves vetting external vendors and looking for alternatives if they display obvious security gaps. These may include:
- Receiving and processing more candidate data than needed
- Sharing information with other subcontractors
- Weak or unclear controls pertaining to how vendors handle and store data
- Former vendors retaining candidate data after cutting ties
Poorly-Managed Access
Convenience and expediency often undermine data security. Rather than implement the principle of role-based access control, HR employees are known to have blanket access to all data on every candidate in the company’s applicant tracking system, ATS for short.
The warning signs are diverse. They range from shared recruiter accounts and excessive permissions to not securing access with MFA or not revoking former employees’ access privileges.
Uncontrolled AI Use
Integrating artificial intelligence into HR operations has created new ways for candidate data to leave an organization’s otherwise tightly-controlled environment.
For example, recruiters might feed candidate CVs or transcript information into large language models to summarize assessments or compare candidates. Without proper guardrails in place, this highly sensitive data may be sent to external AI services, which may then expose or use it as training data. The use of shadow AI only exacerbates the problem.
AI agents for recruitment provide even more capabilities. Their ability to compare or update candidate profiles, schedule interviews, or set communications in motion frees recruiters up to make more informed hiring decisions. That said, AI agents are only safe to use if:
● They have adequately restricted permissions
● They are transparent and straightforward to audit
● Their integrations are easy to control
● Oversight and final decision-making remain in human hands
Susceptibility to Phishing and Social Engineering
Recruiting is based heavily on frequent communication and the exchange of personal information with external parties. This makes recruiters and HR in general highly desirable targets for social engineering, especially now that malicious AI use allows attackers to ramp up their campaigns and reach out with convincing messages.
Since recruiters work with so many diverse contacts, it’s easier for attackers to send phishing emails pretending they’re candidates, hiring managers, etc. They then trick the recruiter into downloading malicious attachments, disclosing sensitive information, or exposing login credentials to ATS and other vital systems. Increased vulnerability makes continuous cybersecurity training all the more important.
Weak Communication Security
Even when communication is legitimate, the sheer volume of messages and diversity of channels can create ample room for error. A recruiter may send interview notes to a colleague in HR through an unsecured messaging system, or they might use publicly accessible links to private candidate data.
All of this means that information can still escape or be compromised, even if the ATS itself is secure.
Conclusion
Protecting candidate data is a crucial and concentrated effort. IT might be responsible for system stability and safeguards, but it’s up to HR to mindfully handle data collection, usage, and sharing. Identifying and closing related security gaps goes a long way towards less unnecessary exposure.
