We live in a world in which it’s difficult to go a few days without reading a news story about data breaches or hacks that expose millions of personal data to cybercriminals. This is why people are looking for ways to keep their information secure online.
It is crucial to understand how to safeguard personal data in your digital business to meet your legal obligations and to protect the privacy of your customers. Here are some helpful tips to help you do so.
1. Identify Personal Data
Personal data, as defined in data protection legislation, is any information that can identify an individual or is used to identify an individual. In the digital world this can cover many things ranging from names to email addresses to biometric information. However, a lot of information that might be private can be omitted from the scope of personal data when there are certain qualifying circumstances. For example when an organization collects various types of information about individuals and they’re all asked to state their occupation and location, it’s not considered to be personal data as it can’t be used to identify an individual person.
Many organisations are legally required to limit the amount personal information they collect. This is usually beneficial, since it reduces the chances of a data breach. A majority of data protection laws require a higher security level for sensitive personal data than normal personal information. This is because a breach can cause more harm or consequences for the person who is affected.
