Key Points

• Differences in subscription levels, features, and costs differentiate Slack from Slack Enterprise.
• Security considerations are paramount in the remote work era, prompting the evaluation of measures offered by both platforms.
• Slack Enterprise benefits security teams with advanced features, compliance support, and enhanced control and visibility.

Ensuring the security of company data is crucial in modern business, particularly with the pandemic-driven surge in remote work, where 22% of Great Britain's workforce was working remotely by September 2022.

With this proliferation of remote work and online collaboration, choosing the right subscription level on platforms like Slack is vital for IT and security teams, as it directly impacts the levels of access, features, and security measures available to protect your organisation’s sensitive business data.

In this article, we’ll shed light on the distinctions between Slack and Slack Enterprise subscriptions, and provide valuable insights for IT and security managers. We’ll explore key differences, security measures, and the benefits of each subscription level.

Whether you’re a large enterprise or a small to medium-sized business, understanding these differences is essential for strengthening your cyber security posture, and protecting your valuable assets.

Let’s delve into the intricacies of Slack and Slack Enterprise, so that you can make the right choice to ensure your business stays both connected and secure when collaborating with employees and third parties.

The key differences between Slack and Slack Enterprise

Slack is a well known and widely used collaboration and communication platform, boasting 65 million active monthly users, and with over 750,000 organisations using it.

When comparing Slack and Slack Enterprise, it’s essential to understand the distinctions between these two platforms. While both serve as communication and collaboration applications, they cater to very different organisational requirements.

Here are the primary differences:

1. Subscription levels

Slack offers a range of subscription tiers, including Free, Pro, and Business+, each with its own set of features and limitations.

In contrast, Slack Enterprise is tailored for larger enterprises, or those operating in regulated industries like finance or healthcare, providing additional security, compliance, and management functionalities.

2. Features and access levels

The free version of Slack comes with certain limitations on message history, integrations, and support, with the paid plans offering more extensive features and support options.

In contrast, Slack Enterprise offers advanced capabilities, such as unlimited message history, premium support and customisable workflows.

3. Cost

While Slack’s free version is accessible to all its users, businesses may need to invest in paid plans to unlock advanced features and support.

Pricing for Slack Enterprise varies based on factors such as the number of users and specific requirements of your organisation. This makes it a more tailored, and potentially higher cost solution.

Comparing subscription levels: Free vs Paid

When evaluating Slack and Slack Enterprise, it’s crucial to delve into the differences between their subscription levels, particularly the free and paid options:

Free plan

The free plan comes with access to basic features, but also has limitations. It offers a 90-day message history, and supports up to 10 integrations, making it ideal for smaller teams, or businesses on a budget.

Paid plans: Pro and Business+

In contrast, paid plans like Pro and Business+ unlock unlimited message history and app integrations. They also have group audio and video meetings, as well as external collaboration with third-parties outside of your organisation.

Furthermore, Business+ offers advanced security features such as SAML-based Single Sign-On (SSO) and data exports, making it suitable for growing teams or businesses that need advanced collaboration tools and security measures.

Enterprise grid

The Enterprise Grid subscription, tailored for large enterprises or regulated industries, offers additional features including support for third-party data loss prevention and custom terms of service. It also provides heightened security and compliance offerings.

Understanding the security measures between Slack and Slack Enterprise

Security is one of the most important considerations of a collaboration tool that can connect you with third parties outside of your organisation, especially considering that the average cost of a data breach is now an average of $4.45 million globally.

When it comes to choosing between Slack and Slack Enterprise, security is an essential factor to consider. Let’s take a closer look at the security measures offered by both:

Free

The free plan offers basic security features such as data encryption at rest and in transit, as well as two-factor authentication for added protection. However, it lacks advanced security features like SAML-based SSO and compliance support.

Paid: Pro and Business+

Paid plans offer enhanced security features such as SAML-based SSO, which allows for centralised user authentication and access control.

Additionally, these plans provide support for compliance requirements like HIPAA and GDPR, so that sensitive data is handled securely and in accordance with regulations.

Enterprise Grid

The Enterprise Grid subscription goes even further by offering enterprise-grade security and compliance offerings. This includes support for third-party data loss prevention (DLP) solutions, domain claiming, and custom terms of service.

With these advanced security measures in place, your organisation benefits from an extra layer of protection. However, it doesn’t completely protect your data, and there may be a need to employ a third-party data protection tool - more on that later.

Benefits of Slack Enterprise for security teams

For security teams, Slack Enterprise offers several key benefits that enhance data protection and compliance efforts:

1. Advanced security features

Slack Enterprise provides access to advanced security features such as SAML-based SSO, data encryption, and support for compliance standards like HIPAA and GDPR.

These features help security teams enforce stringent access controls and ensure that sensitive information remains protected.

2. Comprehensive compliance support

With Slack Enterprise, security teams can manage compliance requirements thanks to features like custom retention policies, data exports for all messages, and native data loss prevention (DLP) capabilities.

This simplifies the process of adhering to industry regulations and mitigating compliance risks.

3. Enhanced control and visibility

Slack Enterprise offers security teams greater control and visibility over their organisation's communication channels, allowing them to manage user permissions and oversee Slack usage, which can aid them in identifying potential security threats.

Best practices for maximising data security with Slack

Implementing the following best practices can help organisations maximise data security when using Slack:

• Regular security audits: Conduct regular data risk audits to identify potential vulnerabilities and ensure compliance with security standards.
• Employee training: Educate employees on security best practices and encourage them to use Slack securely.
• Use strong authentication: Enable two-factor authentication and other strong authentication methods to prevent unauthorised access.
• Data encryption: Encrypt sensitive data both in transit and at rest to protect it from unauthorised access or interception.

By following these best practices, organisations can enhance data security and mitigate the risk of security breaches when using Slack.

📝Report: How bad can a Slack data breach get?

Did you know the average employee shares 600 pieces of Personal Identifiable Information in Slack, including:

• 478 email addresses
• 76 phone numbers
• 4 driving licenses
• 8 credit card numbers
• 2 dates of birth

Expert insights: How Metomic enhances Slack integration

On top of implementing data security best practices when using Slack, Metomic (a Slack verified partner) offers valuable enhancements to Slack integration on both free, paid and Enterprise plans, empowering organisations to bolster their data security efforts. Here’s how:

1. Simplified compliance management

Metomic streamlines compliance management by providing automated tools for data governance and privacy control.

By integrating Metomic with Slack, organisations can ensure compliance with data protection regulations such as GDPR and HIPAA, reducing the risk of regulatory fines and penalties.

2. Granular data access controls

Metomic enables organisations to implement granular data access controls within Slack, allowing them to define who can access and share sensitive information.

This helps prevent unauthorised access and minimises the risk of data breaches or leaks.

3. Real-time monitoring and alerts

Metomic offers real-time monitoring and alerts for Slack channels, enabling organisations to promptly identify and respond to potential security incidents. This proactive approach enhances threat detection capabilities and strengthens overall security posture.

Incorporating Metomic into your Slack environment enhances data security and compliance, providing organisations with greater control and visibility over their sensitive information.

Conclusion

Understanding the differences between Slack and Slack Enterprise is essential for organisations who want to enhance their data security and collaboration capabilities.

While the free version of Slack offers basic functionalities, upgrading to Slack Enterprise provides access to advanced features, enhanced security measures, and tailored solutions for large-scale organisations.

By comparing subscription levels, evaluating security measures, and leveraging expert insights from platforms like Metomic, businesses can optimise their use of Slack to maximise data security and streamline collaboration.

By adopting best practices and leveraging the right tools, organisations can ensure a secure and efficient communication platform that meets their specific needs.

Protecting data in SaaS communication tools is a core function of what Metomic does everyday. Book your personalised demo now to see how Metomic can help protect data in Slack and all of your SaaS applications.