A breach of personal information is a serious concern for customers and employees, and it can also hurt a business’ reputation and bottom line. The good news is that businesses can mitigate these risks with efficient access controls, strong security practices, and thorough compliance programs.
Managing data privacy issues is not easy in today’s digital-first world, with IoT devices constantly listening for commands, apps requesting permission to collect personal information, and more. The growing number of channels for sharing data creates more opportunities for cybercriminals to exploit it. Moreover, larger pools of data increase the risk that sensitive information will be compromised by employees or third parties who haven’t been trained to safeguard it.
Consumers want to be confident that businesses are acting responsibly when it comes to protecting their data. Many feel that the privacy rules put in place by governments are not enough to help. However, businesses must play a significant role as well, and this requires them to be transparent with their consumers about how they’re collecting and using their data.
The best way to protect data privacy is to get consent from the people whose information you’re storing or processing. This is especially important in Europe, where the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) makes it a crime to use data without explicit consent. Additionally, organizations should only use the data they need for their stated purpose and keep it no longer than necessary. Finally, they should have processes in place for responding to data subject requests and a means of updating or deleting records on demand.