Protecting Your Data and Client’s Information in a Changing World
Personal Data & Online Privacy
“Personal data is any information that relates to an identified or identifiable living individual. Different pieces of information, which collected together can lead to the identification of a particular person, also constitute personal data.”
–General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
While this may seem like a complicated definition, it fundamentally boils down to all the digital data that a person individually creates during the time they spend on the internet. This data belongs to each individual, and includes everything from occasional shopping habits to credit card and phone numbers.
This is why online privacy is so important.
Just as you would find it natural to protect your home and personal belongings, so should your digital data be protected in a similar manner. However, due to the lack of physicality to digital valuables, online privacy and data protection slips to the bottom of the priority list. However, online privacy gives you control over your personal data, and it should be an essential for every netizen.
The Tradeoff of Data Privacy
An online privacy breach can also present real offline dangers such as harassment, stalking, identity theft, doxing, and more. While this may seem like a one-in-a-million possibility, you would still not leave your door wide open at night for a thief to enter as they please. Even minor attention to your online security can go a long way.
Many people assume that their data online only includes what they are doing, but this is just a fragment of the online data that you accumulate online. Just as much as what you are doing matters, online privacy also has a lot to do with who you are doing things with and what sites have this information.
Every site collects some form of data on its users. Whether this be age or other demographic data, or every keystroke that you make on your phone, some form of data is being gathered. Sites and applications often track things such as how often a user has been on the site (in the case of social media), the intervals in which they check back on the site, things that are searched (in the case of Google), as well as the tags that are included in posts and where users are tagged in photos—both with regards to physical location tags and who they are tagged with.
All of this online data makes up a profile about you, the user, and this is something that hackers or application providers can use or trade with both legitimate firms and cybercriminal organizations (sometimes alternatively called “data brokers”). Data brokers collect, maintain, and sell data sets on individuals regularly. This data is all collected, analyzed, packaged and sold right under the user’s nose both legally and illegally. This data is sold for various reasons some of which include credit risk assessment, direct marketing, and targeted advertising. Luckily, most of this information is anonymized and does not contain Personal Identifying Information (PII). Thus, personal online data has become a commercial commodity. Data such as your phone number, credit card usage, medical history, etc. is a product to be sold for a price to someone who wants it.
Some of the most important online accounts that you have may include your bank account, email, and/or social media platform. Each of these sites and apps have a wealth of data that they have collected on you. They likely have access to your full name, phone number, date of birth, close friends, spouses, etc. All of this data is up for grabs when left unprotected on the internet.
However, you the user is still in control in many ways. Any user can revoke their rights for use at any time if they feel uncomfortable using a product or service. This gives every user the chance to evaluate whether they are receiving a fair trade-off between their privacy and the benefit of the online service provided.
As such, internet privacy is important as it gives users control over their personal information. Without that control, anyone with malicious intent could manipulate any user’s identity to suit their goals—which can range from trying to sell you a more expensive bag online to stealing your life’s savings.
This is also why it is so important for companies to take responsibility for the data and information collected by the use of their products and platforms. We at ProClass believe in protecting data privacy to the fullest. As such, below we have included some tips that we use to protect user data both online and in the office.
ProClass’ Tips for Protecting Personal Data Privacy Online.
Use strong passwords (and change them regularly)
Use of weak passwords is not uncommon. However, it is one of the biggest threats to your privacy. We at ProClass recommend updating your password to a strong and secure one, while cybersecurity experts suggest updating your password every 3 months or so.
We recommend using between 8-12 characters that are a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters along with special characters and numbers. Don’t use names, addresses, phone numbers or any other identifiable personal information, but keep the password memorable in a different way. This creates strong, complicated passwords that are difficult to hack.
Backup all data
Backing up data is an easy data protection tip that is often overlooked but is very effective. Ransomware is a common type of cyberattack wherein hackers hold a user’s data hostage for a ransom. This can easily be fixed by backing up your data to cloud-based services, or an external hard drive.
Keep your operating system and software up to date
Keeping the operating system of your devices as well as related software up to date is an essential piece in protecting your data. Updates often come with various revisions to software “bugs” as well as new features. This can help to protect your device from hackers by plugging any holes that may have existed in the previous software. Furthermore, updating your security software keeps the program running optimally and protecting your device to the fullest.
Enable firewalls and antivirus protection
Firewalls and antivirus software are basic security measures that safeguard user data. While a firewall is up, it prevents unauthorized access to the device, while antivirus software aids in detecting and removing harmful programs that may have made their way onto your computer. With these protection shields in place, vulnerabilities in the system are more protected.
Be conscious of privacy policies and privacy settings
All applications and services provide their terms of service which will include their privacy policies and may offer personal privacy settings for every user. These allow for users to customize what information is shared, and there should be the option to choose to share the least amount possible.
Always be cautious with the data you are providing as well as who you are providing it to. It is recommended to check out the privacy policy of the company and then personalize any privacy settings to your liking.
ProClass Tips for Protecting Data in the Office.
Know your user data and its pathways in your organization
One of the first steps to effective data security begins with knowing the information that your business has, and who in the office has access to it. Understanding how personal information moves throughout your business and who has access to it, is essential when assessing the security of your platform or program. This allows you to assess/reassess access to certain data, as well as its organization throughout your business.
Be transparent
An important aspect of data protection that is often overlooked is transparency. When working with personal information, it is essential to be clear, open, and honest about the data being collected, its purpose and how it is intended to be safeguarded. Customers have a right to know that their data is being collected, processed, and is being used in a purposeful manner that they will find useful when interacting with your business.
Keep up to date with data security laws
If your business model requires the safe keeping of user information, it is important to comply with the law. Various data security laws have been put into place over the years and it is important that you keep up to date with them in every country that your business conducts transactions in. This includes policy on retention of data, how it should be stored, how long to keep it, and how to dispose of it securely when it is no longer necessary.
This information is constantly changing but can be easily found on websites such as:
https://www.onetrust.com/blog/your-ultimate-guide-to-us-privacy-law-compliance/
https://www.onetrust.com/blog/gdpr-principles/
https://www.justice.gov/opcl/privacy-act-1974
Dispose of data that is no longer necessary.
While the data may no longer be useful to your business, it is still a gold mine for an identity thief. Improper disposal can expose customers to dangers such as fraud and identity theft. Thus, disposal is an important aspect of data protection in a business.
Ensure that paper records are disposed of by shredding, burning, or otherwise destroying the physical material the data rests on by providing easy access to these disposal methods for all employees who may need to dispose of data.
Dispose of old computers and storage devices only after securely erasing all data so that files are no longer recoverable. Deleting is not enough when it comes to data protection, it’s essential to wipe the entire hard drive to prevent files from being reconstructed/recovered and used for alternative purposes.
Employees who work from home should also be aware of these disposal policies for sensitive information and be provided with the essentials to properly dispose of information if needed.
Here at ProClass we handle your class registration data with the utmost care and caution. We aim to provide full transparency as to where your data is and how it is being kept safe. Would you like to know more? Visit us at ProclassSoftware.com or contact us by phone (+1-866-337-1267) or e-mail (info@proclassonline.com.)
