Why SaaS Discovery Comes Before Data Discovery

Martin Snyder
17 minutes ago
4 min read

If you’re trying to rein in risk without slowing teams down, start here: Waldo Security gives you a living map of every SaaS app, account, tenant, and OAuth connection in minutes—including shadow and AI tools—then helps you enforce SSO/MFA, right-size scopes, automate offboarding, and export audit-ready evidence. Get the ground truth first with Instant SaaS Discovery, then keep auditors happy with our SaaS Compliance Overview.

The simple reason: you secure what you can name

“Data discovery” sounds like step one, but in SaaS land the services move the data. If you don’t know which apps, tenants, plug-ins, and cross-cloud integrations exist, any data scan is a partial map. That’s why public guidance puts inventory + least privilege + logging at the foundation of cloud and SaaS security. (CISA)

Add the reality check: the average company still runs about 106 SaaS apps—even after “consolidation.” That’s a lot of places for sensitive data to flow (and for tools to hide outside SSO). (BetterCloud)

What goes wrong when you start with data discovery

You miss entire data paths.DSPM can classify what it touches, but shadow apps and duplicate tenants won’t be crawled if they’re not in scope. Result: blind spots that resurface during incidents or audits.
You over-rotate on symptoms.Scanning finds exposed files, but the root cause is usually identity or configuration (e.g., public links on by default, guests with editor rights, or permissive OAuth). Fixing posture requires knowing the app and how it’s configured. The DBIR keeps reminding us: stolen credentials + web apps are the fastest path to trouble—an app/integration problem first, a data symptom second. (Verizon)
Your “evidence” is a screenshot marathon.Auditors ask, “Which apps? Who has access? When was it removed?” Without discovery feeding continuous evidence, you’re rebuilding proof every cycle. IBM’s research shows faster identification and containment reduces breach cost—continuous visibility is how you get there. (IBM)

The right order of operations (and why it works)

1) Inventory services and identities (SaaS discovery)

Correlate IdP, email, network/DNS/proxy, browser extensions, and expense data into one deduped list: apps, tenants, accounts.
Tag auth method (SSO vs local), admin count, OAuth scopes (watch offline_access), data sensitivity, owner/department.
This directly follows CISA’s cloud reference architecture and zero-trust guidance: visibility first, then control. (CISA)

With Waldo: Discovery reveals sanctioned, unsanctioned, and AI tools in minutes so scope is real—not a guess.

2) Fix posture where data risk concentrates (SSPM basics)

Enforce SSO/MFA on high-sensitivity apps; trim admin sprawl; set consent policies so only low-risk, verified apps can be user-approved; right-size OAuth scopes (avoid tenant-wide *.ReadWrite.All unless justified).
These directly reduce the DBIR’s top patterns (credential-driven web-app abuse). (Verizon)

3) Now run data discovery (DSPM) that actually covers reality

With services mapped and guarded, DSPM can find sensitive data at rest and in motion, identify exposure paths (public links, oversharing), and prioritize fixes by business context.
Even the Cloud Security Alliance’s DSPM guidance assumes you already know the systems in play. (Cloud Security Alliance)

4) Prove it continuously (not just at audit time)

Stream SaaS audit logs to your SIEM; export SSO coverage, admin changes, token revocations, offboarding timestamps, and sharing exceptions on demand.
IBM’s report links faster identification/containment with lower breach cost; operational evidence is how you achieve that speed. (IBM)

What we’ve learned from thousands of discovery runs

Unknown apps create most “surprises.” Shadow tools and pilot tenants explain the “Where did this come from?” bills and breaches. Inventory shuts this down. (Yes, even the AI plug-ins in people’s browsers.)
OAuth persistence multiplies blast radius. offline_access + broad scopes turn one click into months of access—password resets don’t fix it; revoking tokens and consent does.
Spend ≠ risk. Some of the riskiest data egresses come from cheap or free tools. Tie remediation to sensitivity × privilege × outside-SSO, not price.
When you start with discovery, DSPM gets easier. Fewer false negatives, cleaner owner routing, and fixes that stick because identity and config are already in line.

Your 30-day plan (copy/paste)

Week 1 — See it

Run discovery across IdP/email/network/browser/spend. Tag auth method, admins, scopes, sensitivity. Prioritize the top 20 apps by sensitivity × privilege × no-SSO.

Week 2 — Stabilize it

Enforce SSO/MFA on those apps, remove idle admins, revoke unused offline_access tokens, require verified publishers for new consents.

Week 3 — Map data

Point DSPM at the now-accurate app list. Kill public links in high-sensitivity workspaces; reduce “everyone” roles; document exceptions.

Week 4 — Prove it

Stream SaaS logs to SIEM; enable drift alerts (new apps, new admins, new high-privilege grants, new public links). Export your first monthly evidence packet.

With Waldo: SaaS Discovery + SaaS Compliance Overview turn this into configuration and bulk actions—not a spreadsheet project.

KPIs that show the order is working

Unknown → Known: % of traffic/spend tied to inventoried apps (target +10 points in 90 days).
Identity posture: SSO/MFA coverage on high-risk apps; count of high-privilege OAuth grants.
Data exposure: # of public links or overshared folders in sensitive areas.
Offboarding SLA: Median time to remove all SaaS access (including tokens) after HR change.
IR speed: Time from alert to “who/what/which app/which scope.”

Bottom line

Data discovery is powerful, but it’s step two. Step one is naming the services that move and copy your data—so classification actually covers reality, and fixes address root causes. Public guidance backs this sequence, the numbers justify it, and your audits (and incidents) will go smoother when you do it.

Start with the truth map. Everything good—identity hygiene, OAuth governance, data protection, audit sanity—flows from there. (CISA, BetterCloud, Verizon, IBM)