Case Study: Large Footwear and Apparel Manufacturer achieves secure protection of design files and IP with Fortra (Digital Guardian Secure Collaboration)

Fortra Secures Design Files of Large Footwear and Apparel Manufacturer

A global footwear and apparel manufacturer with more than 50,000 employees faced a critical challenge: protecting highly sensitive design files and intellectual property as those assets moved across internal teams, external partners and cloud collaboration tools. The company’s agile, multi‑platform environment (Windows and Mac) and use of complex file types like Adobe Illustrator made traditional controls insufficient, forcing security teams to balance tight IP protection with seamless collaboration and fast production cycles.

The company deployed Fortra’s Digital Guardian Secure Collaboration to enforce data‑centric protection across Box, custom apps and third‑party systems—decoupling encryption keys, applying AES‑256 file protection, and embedding security via an SDK/API. Active file controls (watermarking, screenshot prevention and granular view/edit/print/copy policies), integration with DLP/DRM/CASB/SIEM, and cross‑platform support secured pre‑release designs without disrupting workflows. As a result, the company prevented leaks, gained centralized visibility and control, and expanded the solution across more areas of the business.