Modern Data Security: How DLP and IRM Together Prevent Insider Threats

Today, the landscape of data security is changing. A new generation of data security products is merging the capabilities of DLP and IRM into a single solution. Meanwhile, legacy vendors are incorporating features traditionally found in the other category into their products. This convergence goes beyond tool consolidation; it combines data and user behavior analysis for more effective data protection.

“Gartner sees that DLP vendors are increasingly converging with insider risk management platforms. This convergence enables better detection of data exfiltration as it enriches DLP events with anomalous user behaviors, improved risk scoring and real- time monitoring capabilities.”

- Gartner, 2023 Market Guide for Data Loss Prevention

What Is Data Loss Prevention (DLP) and How It Protects Sensitive Data

The strength of DLP technology lies in its ability to analyze the content of the data and take action to control its movement.

Key aspects of DLP include:

• Analyzes content: DLP tools inspect data for specific patterns that match predefined sensitive criteria, such as credit card numbers, Social Security numbers, or part numbers.
• Prevents data from leaving: Upon detecting these patterns, DLP products can take immediate actions like blocking uploads or preventing messages from being sent.
• Data-centric approach: DLP technology prioritizes the control of data movement, regardless of the user handling it.

Insider Risk Management (IRM): Behavior-Driven Threat Detection Explained

Insider Risk Management (IRM) tools, sometimes referred to as UEBA, focus on identifying and alerting organizations to behavior that indicates a potential insider threat.

Key aspects of IRM include:

• Analyzes behavior: IRM platforms analyze access frequency, data movement volume, and communication habits to detect deviations from typical user behavior.
• Alerts security team to investigate: IRM tools aim to provide early warnings of potential security incidents, but they generally do not take action by themselves.
• User-centric approach: IRM technology focuses on the actions and behaviors of individuals within the organization without necessarily understanding the type of data they are handling.

How Converged DLP + IRM Signals Enable Better Threat Detection

As DLP and IRM vendors add features traditionally found in the other category, they not only meet customer demand for tool consolidation but also enhance data security against insider threats.

Improved risk detection

Combining content analysis with behavior analysis can flag incidents that would otherwise not appear in isolation to be a serious risk.

Example: A user downloads a spreadsheet containing employee Social Security numbers, compresses it in a ZIP container to obscure its content, then copies it to a USB storage device.

A DLP tool would see a spreadsheet containing hundreds of numbers matching a Social Security number pattern along with the word “SSN” but would lose insight into the content once it is compressed. An IRM tool would see a user compressing a file in a ZIP container then renaming the file before transferring it to a USB drive without knowing the contents. But together, we can see that the user is compressing sensitive data and it appears they are attempting to obfuscate their behavior, which is a critical risk.

Reduced false positives

Similarly, correlating information about the content and behavior can reduce false positives that would otherwise be detected as a risk with a narrower picture of events.

Example: A user uploads a large volume of data comprised of video files from the recent company picnic to their personal Dropbox from a work computer.

A DLP tool would see that the data does not contain any sensitive content patterns. But an IRM tool without visibility into the content would detect this as a serious risk because of the volume of information being transferred is anomalous and could signal a threat. Together, we would be able to see that while the volume of data is anomalous, it is likely not sensitive.

What Is Data Detection and Response (DDR) — The Next Evolution in Data Security

Legacy DLP and IRM vendors are adding capabilities traditionally found in their respective offerings. At the same time, a new generation of data security products is coming to market that combines the best of these legacy product categories and builds on them to more effectively protect data. Data Detection and Response (DDR) solutions go beyond the traditional DLP and IRM feature sets, leveraging these capabilities in novel ways.

Classifying data using events not just content

Relying solely on content inspection to identify sensitive data makes it challenging to classify data without consistent content patterns (e.g., customer documents, design files) or no text (e.g., recorded meetings, pre-launch marketing images). DDR uses event context to classify such data.

Events combined in a data lineage provide more insights into the type of data:

• Where it originated: Specific types of data originate from specific places (e.g., customer databases in Snowflake, source code repositories in GitHub).
• How it was handled: Data moves through recognizable channels (e.g., SharePoint for board meetings, Google Drive for client documents).
• Who added to it: Different employees produce different work (e.g., researchers developing drug formulas, designers working on new products).

Tracking risky data ingress

New employees might bring confidential data from previous employers, and AI-generated content can include copyrighted material or malicious code. DDR traces the lineage of all data, allowing detection of potentially sensitive material entering the environment.

Recording all events for investigations and policy back-testing

It is common practice to monitor employees who have given notice or triggered other watchlist criteria closely. DDR supports these workflows by capturing and visualizing all data an employee interacted with during their tenure. This historical data allows for back-testing new policies to see their potential impact.

O'Reilly Guide: Master Converged DLP + IRM

This article introduced how combining DLP content analysis with IRM behavioral signals creates more effective data protection. Ready to put it into practice? The O'Reilly Guide to Insider Risk Management shows you how to build a unified program that leverages both approaches—from detection strategies to investigation workflows.

Download the O'Reilly Guide →

Frequently Asked Questions

Why should I combine DLP and IRM instead of using them separately?

Combining DLP and IRM gives you both content awareness and behavioral context, which neither tool provides alone. DLP sees what data is moving but not why, while IRM sees suspicious behavior but not what data is involved. Together, they reduce false positives and catch threats that would slip through either system individually.

How does converged DLP and IRM improve insider threat detection?

When a user compresses sensitive files and copies them to a USB drive, DLP alone loses visibility once the data is compressed. IRM alone sees the suspicious behavior but doesn't know what's in the file. Converged solutions correlate both signals to identify the full risk—sensitive data being deliberately obscured before exfiltration.

What is Data Detection and Response (DDR) and how is it different from traditional DLP?

DDR is a modern approach that combines DLP, IRM, and data lineage tracking in a single platform built from the ground up. Unlike legacy DLP that only inspects content, DDR traces where data originated, how it was handled, and who interacted with it—providing full context for accurate threat detection.

Can converged DLP and IRM reduce alert fatigue for security teams?

Yes. By correlating data content with user behavior, converged solutions filter out false positives that would otherwise overwhelm security teams. For example, uploading large video files from a company picnic to personal Dropbox might trigger an IRM alert based on volume, but DLP context shows the content isn't sensitive—reducing unnecessary alerts.

What types of data can DDR classify that traditional DLP cannot?

DDR can classify data without consistent text patterns—like recorded meetings, design files, or pre-launch marketing images—by analyzing where the data originated, how it moved through systems, and who created it. Traditional DLP relies solely on content inspection and misses these data types.

How do DLP and IRM work together to track risky data entering an organization?

Converged solutions trace all data lineage, including data brought in by new employees or generated by AI tools. This lets organizations detect when confidential information from previous employers or potentially copyrighted AI-generated content enters the environment—risks invisible to siloed tools.