Data Privacy and Security in the Age of Big Data
Data Privacy and Security in the Age of Big Data
Data privacy and security are changing. While the core of these principles remains the same, the way businesses must handle and utilize data means they must consider new techniques in order to keep that data secure. Most of these changes come from big data. Not only do businesses have more data to handle, but they also process and harness it in ways no one would have believed possible a few years ago.
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Data Privacy vs. Data Security
Data privacy refers to the data’s condition in relation to its original owner’s wishes and rights. Imagine a client has not permitted you to share information with their children, cousin, or neighbor. Sharing their data with any of those parties, accidentally or otherwise, would compromise data privacy.
Data security, on the other hand, typically refers to two things. It refers to the data’s condition within established expectations, laws, etc. as private data. Should unauthorized individuals acquire the data, then its security is compromised. Data security also refers to the solutions in place to protect the data from unauthorized access. Usually, a discussion about data security is about the solutions and systems in place to protect data privacy.
It’s important to reestablish the border between data privacy and security in the age of big data. How people use their information online and through Cloud-hosted applications looks dramatically different than regular business functions did even one or two decades ago. The practical implication of these terms has changed. Businesses need to pay attention to how they use and access data more carefully than ever before. Often the most significant threats to data privacy and security come from handling errors.
Ways to Ensure Data Privacy
Keep in mind that simply using data for unauthorized uses constitutes a loss of data privacy. The fewer hands touch a piece of data, the better, as far as data privacy is concerned. So, to improve both data privacy and security, reexamine how you work with sensitive data. Who has access, and how do they use it? Is the data left vulnerable at any point during use? This could be a file left unattended in an office, a form left up on a screen, or even an unlocked computer.
Data privacy also demands precautions.
Never rely on a single program to defend your data. Use antivirus programs, firewalls, encryption, and multi-step authentication to keep your data safe. Each protects against different types of attack. Every layer also serves as a safety net in case any single layer of your security fails. It’s always best to prepare for the worst, so make sure to add early detection defenses to your plan as well. Even if someone compromises your data privacy, you can limit the damage by preventing the sale of the data.
Ensuring data privacy in the age of big data demands more than the latest cyber security solutions. Businesses must reexamine basic practices and access protocols first. This is the only way to ensure true data privacy protection.
