Product News
Google Drive Identity and Access Risks
Google Drive Identity and Access Risks
Aakash Bhardwaj
Jul 25, 2025
Jul 25, 2025
Table of content
Secure all Identities and Permissions
Introduction
Over the past month, we’ve launched several new integrations based on real customer needs, ranging from infrastructure tooling to SaaS platforms. One integration we’re especially excited about is Google Drive.
Google Drive is now the de facto content collaboration tool for most modern teams but it’s also one of the most overlooked from a security and access governance perspective.
Documents get shared and re-shared. Some are made public. Some are added to shared drives. Some simply go forgotten. Over time, this creates a sprawling mess of sensitive information with unknown levels of exposure and almost no visibility for security teams.
Organizations struggle to answer basic questions like:
Who has access to what documents?
Which files or folders are shared externally?
Which documents are publicly accessible via shareable links?
What third-party apps have access to Drive?
Are any sensitive documents being shared against policy?
With ReShield’s new Google Drive integration, teams finally gain identity-first visibility and control over one of their most critical and commonly used platforms.
The Challenges
The Challenges
Google Drive’s simplicity and powerful collaboration features are also its biggest security challenges. Below are some key issues:
1. Over-Permissioned Documents and Folders
Users frequently grant full access to entire folders just to avoid delays. Over time, these access permissions persist and multiply, leading to unnecessary and over-privileged access across the organization.
2. External Sharing Without Oversight
It’s remarkably easy to share a file with a personal Gmail address or external partner. Most organizations have no idea how much sensitive information has left their environment.
3. Publicly Shareable Links
Documents set to "Anyone with the link can view/edit" have no access control. These links can be shared accidentally or intentionally without triggering any alerts. Some may even be indexed or guessed by attackers.
4. Stale or Orphaned Files
Files created by former employees or old teams can remain accessible indefinitely. These orphaned files often live outside existing governance workflows and may still be widely accessible.
5. Inadequate Audit Trails and Accountability
Google’s native audit logs provide event-level data but often fail to answer fundamental questions like: Who currently has access? Why? And Is that access still justified?
6. Inconsistent Policy Enforcement
Google Drive doesn’t natively enforce policies based on geography, user roles, or document sensitivity, leaving gaps in compliance, risk posture, and data governance.
Google Drive’s simplicity and powerful collaboration features are also its biggest security challenges. Below are some key issues:
1. Over-Permissioned Documents and Folders
Users frequently grant full access to entire folders just to avoid delays. Over time, these access permissions persist and multiply, leading to unnecessary and over-privileged access across the organization.
2. External Sharing Without Oversight
It’s remarkably easy to share a file with a personal Gmail address or external partner. Most organizations have no idea how much sensitive information has left their environment.
3. Publicly Shareable Links
Documents set to "Anyone with the link can view/edit" have no access control. These links can be shared accidentally or intentionally without triggering any alerts. Some may even be indexed or guessed by attackers.
4. Stale or Orphaned Files
Files created by former employees or old teams can remain accessible indefinitely. These orphaned files often live outside existing governance workflows and may still be widely accessible.
5. Inadequate Audit Trails and Accountability
Google’s native audit logs provide event-level data but often fail to answer fundamental questions like: Who currently has access? Why? And Is that access still justified?
6. Inconsistent Policy Enforcement
Google Drive doesn’t natively enforce policies based on geography, user roles, or document sensitivity, leaving gaps in compliance, risk posture, and data governance.
ReShield + Google Drive
ReShield + Google Drive
With just a few clicks, ReShield connects to your Google Workspace and brings comprehensive visibility across:
My Drive, Shared Drives, and Orphaned Files
User Access (internal, external, domain-based, or public)
Third-party apps with Google Drive scopes
Visibility
Quickly see files shared with:
Personal Gmail accounts
External partner domains
The public internet
Take immediate action: revoke access, set expiry, or trigger alerts—right from the ReShield UI.
Just-in-Time (JIT) Access
With ReShield, users can request temporary, time-bound access to documents or folders. Here's how it works:
Request access via Slack, Teams, or ReShield dashboard
Approve via policy or manager
Auto-revoke access after the time period expires
This reduces standing access while maintaining productivity.
Policy-Based Controls
Define granular policies like:
Prevent public sharing of sensitive files
Allow only specific roles to share externally
Auto-expire access after a defined period of inactivity
ReShield enforces these policies automatically—or you can insert a human approval step for critical actions.
Intelligent Access Reviews
Run access reviews on a schedule or ad hoc. Common examples:
Who currently has access to shared HR or Finance folders?
Are any confidential files shared publicly?
Have any employees shared externally in the last 30 days?
ReShield highlights risky permissions, recommends revocations, and automates cleanup—cutting down manual work for IT and security teams.
Shadow IT and App Discovery
ReShield discovers all third-party apps connected to Google Drive, including:
Scopes requested (e.g., read/write/delete access)
User-level install data
Risk scoring and flagging for unapproved apps
This gives you a complete picture of the extended access landscape.
Risk Insights and Alerts
Set up automatic alerts for high-risk activity:
Sensitive files shared publicly
Files still accessible to ex-employees
Sudden spikes in external sharing from a user or team
ReShield gives security teams the insight they need to act fast—and confidently.
With just a few clicks, ReShield connects to your Google Workspace and brings comprehensive visibility across:
My Drive, Shared Drives, and Orphaned Files
User Access (internal, external, domain-based, or public)
Third-party apps with Google Drive scopes
Visibility
Quickly see files shared with:
Personal Gmail accounts
External partner domains
The public internet
Take immediate action: revoke access, set expiry, or trigger alerts—right from the ReShield UI.
Just-in-Time (JIT) Access
With ReShield, users can request temporary, time-bound access to documents or folders. Here's how it works:
Request access via Slack, Teams, or ReShield dashboard
Approve via policy or manager
Auto-revoke access after the time period expires
This reduces standing access while maintaining productivity.
Policy-Based Controls
Define granular policies like:
Prevent public sharing of sensitive files
Allow only specific roles to share externally
Auto-expire access after a defined period of inactivity
ReShield enforces these policies automatically—or you can insert a human approval step for critical actions.
Intelligent Access Reviews
Run access reviews on a schedule or ad hoc. Common examples:
Who currently has access to shared HR or Finance folders?
Are any confidential files shared publicly?
Have any employees shared externally in the last 30 days?
ReShield highlights risky permissions, recommends revocations, and automates cleanup—cutting down manual work for IT and security teams.
Shadow IT and App Discovery
ReShield discovers all third-party apps connected to Google Drive, including:
Scopes requested (e.g., read/write/delete access)
User-level install data
Risk scoring and flagging for unapproved apps
This gives you a complete picture of the extended access landscape.
Risk Insights and Alerts
Set up automatic alerts for high-risk activity:
Sensitive files shared publicly
Files still accessible to ex-employees
Sudden spikes in external sharing from a user or team
ReShield gives security teams the insight they need to act fast—and confidently.
Real-World Example
Real-World Example
Imagine this scenario:
Your marketing intern shares a campaign folder with her personal Gmail account to work over the weekend. The folder includes an unreleased pricing sheet. No one notices.
With ReShield:
The external share is flagged instantly
A rule auto-revokes access or escalates to security
The intern can re-request access through a JIT workflow if needed
This is the power of policy-backed, identity-aware access control.
How It Works
Simple OAuth-based Integration: Admin connects Google Workspace to ReShield via secure OAuth flow.
Metadata Scan Only: ReShield scans sharing metadata—not content. Your file contents remain private.
Risk Detection: Identifies external, public, stale, or over-permissioned access.
Remediation & Policy Enforcement: Automate revocations, notify document owners, and enforce org-wide policies.
Ongoing Monitoring: Continuous monitoring gives you real-time insights into your document access posture.
Built for Security and Compliance Teams
Security, IT, and GRC teams use ReShield to:
Eliminate zero-day, standing access to sensitive documents
Generate audit-ready reports with rich context
Demonstrate compliance with frameworks like ISO, SOC 2, GDPR, etc.
Cut down time spent on manual reviews, approval workflows, and drive audits
Imagine this scenario:
Your marketing intern shares a campaign folder with her personal Gmail account to work over the weekend. The folder includes an unreleased pricing sheet. No one notices.
With ReShield:
The external share is flagged instantly
A rule auto-revokes access or escalates to security
The intern can re-request access through a JIT workflow if needed
This is the power of policy-backed, identity-aware access control.
How It Works
Simple OAuth-based Integration: Admin connects Google Workspace to ReShield via secure OAuth flow.
Metadata Scan Only: ReShield scans sharing metadata—not content. Your file contents remain private.
Risk Detection: Identifies external, public, stale, or over-permissioned access.
Remediation & Policy Enforcement: Automate revocations, notify document owners, and enforce org-wide policies.
Ongoing Monitoring: Continuous monitoring gives you real-time insights into your document access posture.
Built for Security and Compliance Teams
Security, IT, and GRC teams use ReShield to:
Eliminate zero-day, standing access to sensitive documents
Generate audit-ready reports with rich context
Demonstrate compliance with frameworks like ISO, SOC 2, GDPR, etc.
Cut down time spent on manual reviews, approval workflows, and drive audits
Conclusion
Conclusion
The Google Drive integration is now live for all ReShield customers.
To enable:
Go to the Integrations tab in ReShield
Connect Google Workspace
Start discovering, reviewing, and remediating in minutes
Google Drive is an incredibly powerful collaboration tool but without access visibility, it becomes a growing security and compliance liability.
ReShield brings identity-first governance to Drive with:
Document discovery and risk analysis
Internal and external access tracking
Just-in-time file access
Smarter, automated access reviews
Powerful policy enforcement
It’s time to close the blind spot.
ReShield your documents. Take control of your Google Drive security today.
The Google Drive integration is now live for all ReShield customers.
To enable:
Go to the Integrations tab in ReShield
Connect Google Workspace
Start discovering, reviewing, and remediating in minutes
Google Drive is an incredibly powerful collaboration tool but without access visibility, it becomes a growing security and compliance liability.
ReShield brings identity-first governance to Drive with:
Document discovery and risk analysis
Internal and external access tracking
Just-in-time file access
Smarter, automated access reviews
Powerful policy enforcement
It’s time to close the blind spot.
ReShield your documents. Take control of your Google Drive security today.
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San Francisco
1075 Space Part Way Mountain View,
California
Bengaluru
WeWork, Roshini Tech Hub,
Marathahalli, Bengaluru 560037
Features
Resources
San Francisco
1075 Space Part Way Mountain View,
California
Bengaluru
WeWork, Roshini Tech Hub,
Marathahalli, Bengaluru 560037
Features
Resources
San Francisco
1075 Space Part Way Mountain View,
California
Bengaluru
WeWork, Roshini Tech Hub,
Marathahalli, Bengaluru 560037
Features
Resources
San Francisco
1075 Space Part Way Mountain View,
California
Bengaluru
WeWork, Roshini Tech Hub,
Marathahalli, Bengaluru 560037
Features
Resources
San Francisco
1075 Space Part Way Mountain View,
California
Bengaluru
WeWork, Roshini Tech Hub,
Marathahalli, Bengaluru 560037
Features
Resources