Maintaining Data Privacy Compliance is Crucial!

Here in the blog pages of ITFIRM.COM, we talk a lot about protecting your data, and rightly so: if you lose your data, you lose your business – typically within six months. In effect, data preservation is self-preservation. While closing the doors is the ultimate business devastation, running afoul of compliance regulations is not pretty, nor are the long last effects in the wake of a data breach. Those long-lasting costs are what we are going to examine here.

Authorities have been legislating and producing consumer data regulations since data only existed on paper. Now that it is primarily digital, compliance regulations have snowballed. Many organizations work under the eyes of one or more data privacy regulatory agencies with whom they need to remain compliant.

Some prime examples of industry-specific Regulators:
HIPAA governs the U.S. healthcare industry and their service partners.
PCI-DSS watches over businesses that collect payment card data.
CMMC holds sway over all contractors for the Department of Defense (DoD).
FINRA oversees rules governing the Broker-Dealer Industry serving American Investors.
GDPR is a wide-reaching data protection regulation impacting anyone selling to European Union (EU) citizens – U.S. based online sellers with customers in the EU must be compliant with GDPR.

But these are just the tip of the iceberg. Many state, county, and municipal jurisdictions also have their own data privacy laws. Organizations need to be aware of these compliance requirements. But they also need to know about updates to these rules.

We at ITFIRM.COM are well-acquainted with the various compliances our clientele must adhere to, along with updates to the rules as they occur. The penalties for running afoul of Compliance Regulations can be severe, and extremely damaging to an organization so double-checking with your IT services provider is recommended.

By the end of 2024, about 75% of the population will have its data protected by one or more privacy regulations.

It’s wise to expect new rules as authorities continuously enact new data privacy regulations. This year Colorado, Utah, Connecticut, and Virginia will begin enforcing new data privacy statutes.

You need to stay on top of these requirements to avoid stiff penalties for a data breach. If it is found that proper Cybersecurity was lacking, fines are typically even higher. Providertech  lists the 10 highest HIPAA penalties.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) uses a sliding scale. Violators can be fined between $100 to $50,000 per breached record. The more negligent the company is, the higher the fine. Anthem Healthcare set the current record with a penalty of $16 million dollars in 2015.

Does that sound scary?

Here are some tips that can help you keep up with data privacy updates coming your way:

How to Stay on Top of Data Privacy Compliance

1) Know the Regulations That Effect You

Most organizations have at least one set of data privacy rules they must adhere to – some organizations have a few. There could be regulations for:

Industry

Where you sell (e.g., if you sell to the EU)

Statewide

City or county

Federal (e.g., for government contractors)

Make sure you accurately identify all the various data privacy regulations that you may be subject to. This helps ensure you’re not caught off guard by one you didn’t know about. As the saying goes, “Ignorance of the law is no excuse.”

2) Keep Abreast of Regulation Updates

Don’t get blindsided by data privacy rule changes. You’re playing a game where the goal posts keep moving, but you can stay on top of any changes by signing up for updates on the appropriate website. Look for the official website for the compliance authority.

In the healthcare field, you can sign up for HIPAA updates at HIPAA.gov. You should do this for each of the regulations your business falls under.

Make sure you institute task redundancy among your employees. Hopefully, nothing will fall through the cracks if you have updates sent to more than one person. Typically, your Security Officer, IT services, and another responsible party. This ensures they don’t get missed if someone is on vacation.

3) Review Your Data Security Standards Annually

Technology is always evolving in companies both big and small. This doesn’t always mean a massive enterprise transition. Sometimes it may be simply adding a new server or a new computer to the mix.

Any changes to your IT environment can mean falling out of compliance. Adding a new employee mobile device without proper protection is a problem. One new cloud tool an employee decides to use can also cause a compliance issue.

Do a review of your data security - at least on an annual basis, then compare your findings with your compliance requirements to make sure you’re still good.

4) Audit Your Security Policies and Procedures

Policies and procedures should also be audited on an annual basis (at least) as well. These written documents tell employees what’s expected from them in every area from dress-code to computer/internet usage. They also provide direction when it comes to data privacy and how to handle a breach.

Review your security policies whenever there is a data privacy regulation update. You want to ensure that you’re encompassing any new changes to your requirements.

5) Update Your Technical, Physical & Administrative Safeguards as Needed

When are notified that a data compliance update is coming, plan ahead. It’s best to comply before the rule kicks in, if possible.

Look at these three main areas of your IT security:

Technical safeguards – Systems, devices, software, etc.

Administrative safeguards – Policies, manuals, training, etc.

Physical safeguards – Doors, keypads, building security, etc.

6) Provide Ongoing Training on Compliance and Data Privacy Policies

Keep employees aware of any changes to data privacy policies that impact them. When you receive news about an upcoming update, add it to your ongoing training.

Conducting ongoing Security Awareness Training for staff is an excellent Cybersecurity practice. This keeps their anti-breach skills sharp and reminds them of what’s expected. Prepare them properly by including updates they need to know about.

And always, always log your training activities. It’s a good idea to log the date, the employees educated, and the topics covered. This way, you have this documentation if you do suffer a breach at some point.