Security and privacy are key elements that play a major role in a company’s success. The first major privacy and security element is providing the customer privacy. If the customer feels that they and/or their information isn’t secure, they are not likely to stay with that company. This means that the company has no customers and for the company existing without customers means it essentially fails. Therefore, customer privacy is a key element towards the importance of privacy and security for a company as a whole.

A second element of privacy that is part of a company’s success is ensuring their compliance with GDPR and HIPAA regulations.

—-

GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679) is a regulation in EU law on data protection and privacy for all individuals within the European Union and the European Economic Area. It also addresses the export of personal data outside the EU and EEA areas.

HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) is United States legislation that provides data privacy and security provisions for safeguarding medical information.

Coming in 2020:

CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act ) will serve to protect California consumer rights and encourage stronger privacy and greater transparency overall. It will give consumers ownership, control, and security over their personal information – and consumers will have the ability to request that any business disclose (and delete) the personal information that it collects, and request that their data not be sold to third parties. This is for companies that serve California customers and companies that are based in California.

—-

Being compliant with these regulations ensures that the company in questions steers clear of any big fines that are the result of not being compliant with these regulations. Compliance, by nature of the company being compliant with the regulations, ensures the security and privacy of the customers, as well. Compliancy not only keeps the company safe from any unnecessary fines, but also reassures customers.

A third and vital element of privacy that contributes to a company’s success is having secure systems and partners. It is of the utmost necessity to have a secure system in order to gain any level of success. It is also necessary for any and all partners of the company to have a secure system as well. Without a secure system and secure partners there is no way to properly guarantee that the company’s or their customer’s data is secure and private.

Going into a little more detail about these requirements

The GDPR, the General Data Protection Regulation, is a regulation in EU law regarding data protection and privacy for all individuals that exist within the European Union. The GDPR is the primary law that regulates how companies protect EU citizens’ personal data.  GDPR standardizes data across all EU countries. The main goal of GDPR is privacy and it enforces regulations in order to achieve that. Similarly, it is important to also be compliant. HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, is United States legislation that provides security provisions and data privacy for safeguarding medical information. For example, HIPAA has to do with securing both patient data and actual communications as part of telemedicine.

ISO:27001:2013 certification adds an additional layer of certification. ISO, the International Standards Information, is a group of standards that aid organizations in keeping their information assets secure, such as financial information, employee details, third party information, etc. ISO 27001:2013 is a specification that is necessary for an ISMS (an information security management system). This specification is designed to manage information security in a company. The ISMS aids in managing the company’s private and sensitive information by way of a risk management process. Proper security procedures are essential to maintaining a high level of security, which is what ISO aims to achieve. ISO essentially sets up international procedures to follow to ensure compliance with GDPR and HIPAA and achieve the utmost security and privacy.

The CCPA was created in response to GDPR and a need for privacy protection in California.  It will give consumers ownership, control, and security over their personal information – and consumers will have the ability to request that any business disclose (and delete) the personal information that it collects, and request that their data not be sold to third parties. It goes into effect January 1, 2020.