In one embodiment, a method includes managing and controlling a plurality of data-access credentials. The method further includes accessing data from a plurality, of sources in a plurality of data formats. The accessing includes using one or more data-access credentials of the plurality of data-access credentials. The one or more data-access credentials are associated with at least a portion of the plurality of data sources. The method also includes abstracting the data into a standardized format for further analysis. The abstracting includes selecting the standardized format based on a type of the data. In addition, the method includes applying a security policy to the data. The applying includes identifying at least a portion of the data for exclusion from storage based on the security policy. Additionally, the method includes filtering from storage any data identified for exclusion. Further, the method includes storing the data in the standardized format.