Business
Fact-checked

At WiseGEEK, we're committed to delivering accurate, trustworthy information. Our expert-authored content is rigorously fact-checked and sourced from credible authorities. Discover how we uphold the highest standards in providing you with reliable knowledge.

Learn more...

What is Privacy Management?

Tess C. Taylor
Tess C. Taylor

Privacy management is defined as the system for protecting personal or proprietary information and data from unauthorized viewers. For many companies that manage large amounts of customer information, particularly those involved in financial industries, privacy management is vital to protecting the identities and personal information of multiple consumers. Privacy management at the corporate level is generally handled by a network security team or a security vendor that monitors communications and servers to make sure this information stays safe.

The process of protecting personal information begins at the consumer level. People should use caution when giving out any personal information while conducting business or financial transactions via any form of communication that involves storage of this information, whether in a hard copy or digital format. Sending personal information via email, filling out online forms and even using the postal system can put information at risk for interception by criminals and other unauthorized parties.

Businessman giving a thumbs-up
Businessman giving a thumbs-up

When using the Internet, it's important that consumers and businesses alike use a secure network for transmitting information online. A company can contract with a security vendor to set up website pages and forms that are protected by using the latest security measures and encryption. This cuts down on the opportunity for Internet theft of personal data to occur.

Privacy protection takes an even greater role when it comes to the handling of information by government and financial agencies. Data handled by government or banking institutions is automatically targeted by Internet thieves. Measures must be put into place to maintain integrity of the data at the same time as protecting it at all costs from intruders.

For business owners, staying compliant with rules and regulations concerning privacy management is a general requirement for doing business. Failure to protect personal and financial information provided by clients during business transactions can carry severe repercussions. If data is lost or illegally accessed, companies that do not have a privacy management policy in place can face serious fines and are legally responsible for damages caused as a result of this breach.

A good many privacy management systems and applications exist to support the needs of businesses. Depending on the type of information and the transfer process, privacy management software and hardware support can be obtained to keep all information safe from outside eyes. Being smart about Internet and digital privacy as well as encouraging workplace security at all levels should be at the forefront of any business strategy.

Discussion Comments

MrMoody

@SkyWhisperer - Our network administrators enforce our privacy guidelines using their software. There are some websites we couldn’t visit even if we wanted to. Those sites are simply blocked, and of course, the administrator monitors all of our web surfing as well.

As a matter of principle we shouldn’t do any non work-related Internet browsing. That’s the way it’s supposed to work in theory and the way it’s written down in the employee handbook.

In practice however it’s a different story. Now and then we get lectures from management about responsible use of network resources, and that stops misuse of computer resources for awhile, but everyone gets lazy again and falls back on their old ways. Maybe if they actually fired someone over it then it would stop.

SkyWhisperer

@David09 - A good way to protect the privacy of your information is to constantly change your passwords. Also, it should go without saying that your password should never be “password,” which as dumb as it sounds, happens more often than you think.

When you go online, only buy from sites that offer 128 bit AES encryption. This should provide you with the maximum security. I don’t think that hackers can break into that encryption algorithm, although I could be wrong. That’s just what I have been told.

David09

We have a pretty strict employee privacy policy where I work. Of course we have the usual forms we have to sign agreeing that we will not, under any circumstances, disclose trade secrets. That seems like a no-brainer.

On top of that, however, we also have to be careful with portable devices. Since we deal with government data (I work in the utilities industry) we are explicitly prohibited from bringing flash drives, compact discs, floppy disks or even mp3 players to work.

In other words, if it can be used to retrieve information from our computers, it’s banned. Of course we have such devices at work for transferring data from one computer to another, when necessary. But those devices stay at work. We are pretty much sequestered from the outside world, in that sense.

Post your comments
Login:
Forgot password?
Register:
    • Businessman giving a thumbs-up
      Businessman giving a thumbs-up