WASHINGTON, D.C. - 
(NewMediaWire) - January 28, 2015 - January
28 is International
Data Privacy Day, one official day meant to raise awareness and promote
privacy and data protection best practices, and a leading privacy expert says
six important questions should be asked by companies not only today, but every
day.
“Today is Data Privacy Day and companies of all sizes are being encouraged to assess their privacy and data practices and analyze them for vulnerabilities before a privacy crisis happens,” said Montgomery Blair Sibley, general manager of Privacy Compliance Consulting. “Target. Home Depot. We hear their stories because they are big companies, but trust me, breaches are happening to all-size companies every single day. Every company doing business in the world today has to realize that they are ‘data stewards’ of personal information of their customers, their employees and others and they have an obligation to protect it.”
Sibley, who is certified in 21st century issues of Cybersecurity and Information Privacy regulation, consults with enterprises of all sizes to help them avoid the costly consequences of ill-though-out, ill-advised decisions in the privacy realm. He says privacy compliance is easily achievable and the answers to six important questions will determine the next steps a company should be taking.
- Have you identified which domestic
and international privacy-related laws and regulations and
industry-specific standards obligate your enterprise to protect the
privacy of personal information?
- Does your enterprise have specific
written policies and procedures related to personal information held by
the enterprise?
- Are your written privacy policies
and procedures clearly written and enforceable, and do they address the
collection, use, disclosure, and retention of personal information?
- Has the enterprise assigned a
privacy officer for privacy issues who has clear authority to oversee the
privacy policies and practices of the enterprise?
- Does your enterprise regularly
train employees concerning the policies and procedures for managing
personal information?
- Does the enterprise communicate its privacy policies and practices to your customers and others, including procedures to make inquiries and file complaints?
A “NO” to any of these six questions could be a cause for concern. “Enterprises who can’t answer YES to all six questions would surely benefit from a comprehensive, independent assessment of the risks, controls and business disclosures associated with the privacy of personal information. Good privacy practices increase a company’s value and reduce potential liabilities and who doesn’t want that?”
CONTACT:
Privacy Compliance Consulting
Montgomery Blair Sibley
www.privacycomplianceconsulting.com
sibley@privacycomplianceconsulting.com
202.643.7232