Data privacy focuses on the safeguarding of sensitive information. It involves a variety of aspects such as operational data backup, business continuity/disaster recovery (BCDR), information lifecycle management and security. It protects information assets against loss and damage from various sources such as facility outages and disruptions, application and user errors, machine failure and malware/virus attacks. It also helps ensure availability of critical data, so users can access and use them even when these assets are offline.
Achieving data privacy requires a holistic approach that includes the design and implementation of systems and processes. It must include privacy by design, and encompass the full lifecycle of data, from collection to destruction. It must incorporate the principles of transparency, purpose limitation, data minimization, accuracy, storage limitation and integrity/confidentiality. It must also support individual rights, including the right to be informed of how their data will be used and the right not to be subject to automated decision making.
In today’s digital economy, the ability to share and receive personal data plays an essential role in the creation of products and services that we need in our daily lives. But that is not an excuse to disregard privacy. We must demand that companies treat our data responsibly and protect our privacy with strict protocols and innovative privacy technologies.
It is easy to overlook how much our personal information is shared, and we must take steps to protect it. For example, we can remove apps that collect our personal data from our devices or limit the amount of information they gather by deleting them every few months. We can also make sure we know which sites and apps are collecting our information and use tools such as ad blockers and VPNs to help protect ourselves online.