Cybersecurity Experts Weigh In On Jan. 28 Data Privacy Day

By   ISBuzz Team
Writer , Information Security Buzz | Jan 24, 2020 03:30 am PST

This coming Tuesday, January 28, marks International Data Privacy Day.  Powered by the National Cyber Security Alliance, Data Privacy Day “encourages consumers to own their privacy and businesses to improve their data privacy practices.”

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Stephen Manley
Stephen Manley , Chief Technologist
January 29, 2020 11:25 am

An unspoken part of the data privacy challenge is that people distrust large corporations, government and law enforcement agencies to manage their privacy. (Even while they send their private information to the most transparent phishing operations – go figure.) In theory, we want privacy. In reality, people will not trade off user experience and safety for digital privacy that they do not believe in.

Data privacy will not be solved just by passing sweeping legislation or a single magical product. Instead, there’s a journey to follow. That journey begins with cloud. The power of cloud has made it easier to put people’s privacy at risk. The same power can help centrally track and manage private data – including all the copies.

Last edited 4 years ago by Stephen Manley
Jitesh Ghai
Jitesh Ghai , SVP and General Manager, Data Governance and Privacy
January 28, 2020 12:31 pm

The way the world sees and manages data privacy has been subject to a massive shake up in the past two years. And while data privacy has always been on the agenda of truly customer-focused organisations, it’s heartening to see that data privacy is now a boardroom priority for every business.

Privacy isn’t just a compliance concern; it has broader implications for the business. It’s data that drives competitive differentiation and companies that take privacy seriously are five times more likely to have their customers entrust their data to them, which in turn helps drive key strategic business initiatives, such as customer experience, supply chain optimisation, new product and services innovation.

While data protection has become more engrained into corporate culture, due in part to regulation, it’s frustrating to see many businesses put data privacy governance on the back burner, as they consider it a ‘nice to have’, rather than a necessity.

Businesses are failing to appreciate that data governance is the bedrock for data privacy. Focusing on data privacy governance aligns an organisation to drive business value, by providing best practices for discovering data, who’s using it, who it belongs to; understanding risks for prioritising remediation; and protecting personal data exposure as the key to building trust with consumers.

In reality, data governance enables greater data democratisation while supporting data privacy. By putting de-sensitised data insights into the hands of data-driven leaders and subject matter experts from across the lines of business and IT, as opposed to just one data scientist, businesses can empower employees to utilise data-led insights to collaborate and deliver successful outcomes that build trust and improve customer experience.

Those businesses for which data privacy governance is already a well-understood and organisational competency are gaining the edge in their market. They’re the ones that can comply with regulations, rely on accurate analytics, power customer experience initiatives, migrate to public cloud safely, and optimise business processes for greater efficiencies.

Last edited 4 years ago by Jitesh Ghai
Barry Cook
Barry Cook , Privacy and Group Data Protection Officer
January 28, 2020 12:21 pm

The amount of data produced in the world each day is incredible. Over 2.5 quintillion bytes of storable information is developed every 24 hours — and the pace, and value, of this will only increase with the rise of automation and digitalised technologies.

Although we may not appreciate it, personal information has become a prime commodity in our global economy. It provides a snapshot of our day-to-day lives, and can be used by organisations for targeted advertising and for determining the future behaviours of consumers.

So, ensuring it is sufficiently protected, and shielded from potential misuse, is key.

For us, at VFS Global, a company that handles millions of visa applications each year, employing the highest possible standard of data protection is not just the right thing to do – it’s imperative to our business model. We are trusted with highly sensitive information, including fingerprints and other biometric data, which could cause significant harm to the individual if it fell into the wrong hands. So, ensuring we have the most robust practices, safeguards, and continued confidence of our customers as “good custodians” of their data, is vital.

Key dates, then, such as Data Privacy Day, are important for businesses and consumers alike. For the former, they provide an opportunity to reflect on operational practices, while, for the latter, they remind us of the significance of our personal information in the world today.

Last edited 4 years ago by Barry Cook
Charles Southwood
Charles Southwood , Regional Vice President, Northern Europe and MEA
January 28, 2020 12:00 pm

In our current climate, protecting personal data has never been more important or more challenging. The annual celebration of Data Privacy Day provides us not only with a chance to reflect on how far we’ve come, but also to look forward to how we can improve in the future.

The introduction of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in 2018 presented a tough challenge for some companies. Since then, we have seen many organizations continue to struggle to ensure the simple and transparent management of personal data, mainly due to the fact it is distributed in different and separated repositories.

Data virtualization provides a solution for the data privacy challenge. It enables easy and complete access to all repositories, through a single information layer. This means that data can be traced and audited in real-time, no matter where it is stored.

Data virtualization facilitates compliance with current legislation whilst enabling organizations to protect their most valuable asset; their data.

Last edited 4 years ago by Charles Southwood
Carolyn Crandall
Carolyn Crandall , Chief Deception Officer
January 28, 2020 11:38 am

Protecting data privacy should be a board level priority for all organizations. Understanding both legal and operational requirements should not be passed over quickly as the devil is in the details on these matters. Companies should post privacy statements and consumers should read them to determine if the company’s policies are sufficient to protect their information and rights. Noting, this goes well beyond just reading a cookies banner. If these statements are not clear or complete, it may be wise to seek out suppliers that maintain proper levels of security and rights administration.

Last edited 4 years ago by Carolyn Crandall

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