Did you know January 21st through January 27th is Data Privacy Week 2024? Similar to Cybersecurity Awareness Month in October, the National Cybersecurity Alliance (NCSA) leads the way in raising awareness about the importance of protecting one’s privacy and data in an online world. For those unfamiliar, Data Privacy Week is really a continuation of Data Privacy Day, led by the NCSA.
A little history
Data Privacy Day was first recognized in 2007 by the Council of Europe and is recognized as Data Protection Day. The United States in 2009 followed suit and recognized January 28th and coined it Data Privacy Day. Why January 28th? Well, it commemorates the signing of Convention 108, which is considered to be the first binding treaty dealing with privacy and data protection. This is a treaty that was signed by the Council of Europe.
Now to today
So now that we have a little background knowledge, let’s talk about the importance of data privacy. As a small business, you almost certainly are in possession of private and personal information. Chances are your small business stores or processes one of these data types: Employee Information, Customer or Client Information, and Vendor or Purchase Information.
Employee Information:
- Full names
- Personal addresses
- Personal phone numbers
- Banking information & other financial information
- Social Security Numbers
- Health information
- Other personally identifiable information
Customer or Client Information
- Full names
- Personal addresses
- Personal phone numbers
- Banking information & other financial information
- Social Security Numbers
- Health information
- Other personally identifiable information
- Purchasing habits
- Proprietary information
- Confidential business data
Vendor or Purchasing Information
- Banking information & other financial information
- Supplier pricing
- Contractual information
- Confidential business data
- Proprietary information
As you can see there is a variety of data types your small business most likely has or processes daily that is considered private information. So come join us for Data Privacy Week next week to learn more about the steps you can take to secure your data.
To learn more about cybersecurity threats, trends, and topics with a focus on small business, check out Small Business, Big Threat!