By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    healthcare cybersecurity
    4 Helpful Tips on How to Protect Your Medical Practice Against Cyber Attacks
    October 24, 2021
    Health Check Diagnosis Medical Condition Analysis Concept
    6 Health Woes With Online Remedies
    January 19, 2022
    Eight Things Men Should Know About the Male Menopause
    Eight Things Men Should Know About the Male Menopause
    April 24, 2022
    Latest News
    Health Benefits of Taking a Vacation to Reduce Your Stress
    September 27, 2023
    First Aid Training Enhancing Workplace Health and Safety
    September 25, 2023
    Beyond the Clinic: Medical Surveys Are a Roadmap to Passive Income for Doctors
    September 23, 2023
    5 Self-Care Habits to Help You Live an A+ Life
    September 21, 2023
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Diabetes 11.11.11- Request for Images, Videos
    November 3, 2011
    Schumer’s Completely Unhelpful Approach to Curbing Drug Shortages
    December 8, 2011
    Primary Care Workforce Shortage: Possible Solutions
    January 5, 2012
    Latest News
    Job Seekers with Disabilities Should at Health Insurance Benefits
    September 12, 2023
    Reasons That Drug Prices Are Rising to Unsustainable Levels
    September 12, 2023
    How Revenue Lifecycle Management Helps Healthcare Providers to Optimize Business Operations
    September 6, 2023
    The Hidden Benefits of Practice Exams for Medical Professionals
    September 6, 2023
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: 5 Tips to Protect PII in Any Industry
Share
Sign In
Notification Show More
Aa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Aa
Search
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > 5 Tips to Protect PII in Any Industry
BusinessPolicy & LawTechnology

5 Tips to Protect PII in Any Industry

Larry Alton
Last updated: 2022/06/12 at 12:57 AM
Larry Alton
Share
6 Min Read
5 Tips to Protect PII in Any Industry
SHARE

Regardless of the industry, personally identifiable information (PII) is governed by laws and regulations across the world. In most cases, businesses are required to protect information that can harm someone when exposed. Although data protection laws differ by country and state, the rules are strictly enforced.

Contents
What is considered sensitive data?1. Take data protection seriously regardless of your industry2. Encrypt data on your servers3. Know what regulations you’re required to follow4. Enforce strict access policies5. Don’t collect more data than you needEvery industry is a target for data breaches

The consequences of not protecting PII can be severe. Both data breaches and accidental data exposure can be damaging. The only difference is that data breaches are often more severe and come with hefty regulatory fines.

In this article, you’ll learn how to protect PII in any industry, but first, let’s define PII and sensitive data because the two aren’t always the same.

What is considered sensitive data?

PII isn’t necessarily sensitive. You might be wondering what type of personal information is considered to be sensitive data. That depends on the context. For example, Box explains several different circumstances where PII would be treated differently.

More Read

Medical Professionals exams

The Hidden Benefits of Practice Exams for Medical Professionals

3 Beneficial Ways Technology Impacting Your Wellness and Health
Benefits of Outsourcing Healthcare Software Development Services
5 Tech Apps and Gadgets to Maintain Your Health Connectivity
Guarding Your Health – 6 Essential PPE Investments for the New Home Health Worker

In one example, a list of people attending a volunteer orientation at their local food pantry is personally identifiable information, but it’s not considered sensitive. On the contrary, a list of people who received a particular vaccine would be considered PII and sensitive information since it’s related to their medical history. This is why data breaches in the health sector are major news stories.

Here are some tips to effectively protect PII, whether or not the data you manage is considered sensitive.

1. Take data protection seriously regardless of your industry

Every industry is susceptible to data breaches and accidental exposure. Although, some industries are more susceptible to data breaches than others, like government agencies and healthcare companies. That’s mostly because the amount of sensitive information processed in those sectors is enormous, so these industries are a prime target.

No matter what industry you’re in, take data protection seriously. If you process or store any personal data, even if it’s only a first name and email address, it’s worth protecting.

2. Encrypt data on your servers

Whether you own or lease a server, make sure it’s encrypted at rest and in transit. If you use a third-party software service, make sure they encrypt all data on their servers. If you’re handling PHI in the healthcare industry, encryption is basically a requirement.

Although it’s not specifically stated that data must be encrypted, encryption is the only way to prevent stolen data from being read. Since you can’t prevent all data breaches, encryption is the only way to avoid the consequences of a data breach.

3. Know what regulations you’re required to follow

With some regulations, you don’t have a choice. For instance, everyone must adhere to the GDPR. These regulations exist to protect data belonging to EU residents and everyone is required to comply when handling an EU resident’s data.

There are other, similar regulations that apply when handling certain people’s data. For instance, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) of 2018 gives CA residents several rights that all businesses must comply with or face severe consequences. Similar to the GDPR, the CCPA applies only when a business collects data from CA residents.

4. Enforce strict access policies

Who has access to your customer’s data? Ideally, you’ll want to keep customer data inaccessible to the majority of your employees. Your workers should only have access to the data they need to do their job and nothing more. This requires creating a system that grants or denies access to data based on specific credentials.

The biggest threat to data security is shared and stolen login credentials. Nobody should be able to access your customers’ data with just a username and password. Rather than implementing account-based access, use additional security measures like multi-factor authentication and device authentication.

Make sure your employees know that sharing login credentials is strictly forbidden. You may want to make credential sharing a fireable offense without any warnings or second chances. You can’t take data privacy too seriously because just one mistake can have devastating consequences for your customers and your business.

5. Don’t collect more data than you need

When you plan on marketing products and services to your contacts, it’s normal to collect as much information as possible. You may ask for a person’s name, email, birth date, gender, location, and more. This seems smart since you may want to use the information in the future. However, if you experience a data breach in the future, all of that data will be exposed.

As a precaution for your contacts, don’t collect any data you don’t already have a plan to use in your marketing campaign.

Every industry is a target for data breaches

Businesses in every industry are a potential target for hackers. There are no exceptions. If you collect data from your clients or customers, it’s your duty to protect it while it’s in your possession.

Sign Up For Daily Newsletter

Be keep up! Get the latest breaking news delivered straight to your inbox.
By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.
Larry Alton June 12, 2022
Share This Article
Facebook Twitter Copy Link Print
Share
Previous Article What To Consider When Seeking IV Therapy What To Consider When Seeking IV Therapy
Next Article The Top Benefits of a Wearable Blood Pressure Monitor Watch The Top Benefits of a Wearable Blood Pressure Monitor Watch

Stay Connected

1.5k Followers Like
4.5k Followers Follow
2.8k Followers Pin
136k Subscribers Subscribe

Latest News

Andropause hormonal decline
The Benefits of TRT for Andropause and Hormonal Decline
Wellness September 28, 2023
Cancer Prevention
The Importance of Lipoma Examination in Cancer Prevention
Cancer September 28, 2023
dental implant
Cost Analysis of Dental Implants in Australia
Dental health September 28, 2023
View,Of,Niagara,Falls,In,Autumn
Health Benefits of Taking a Vacation to Reduce Your Stress
Health September 27, 2023

You Might also Like

quality of life
Technology

Elevating Quality of Life: An In-depth Examination of Stairlift Technological Advancements

September 17, 2023
health insurance disability
Policy & Law

Job Seekers with Disabilities Should at Health Insurance Benefits

September 12, 2023
medical billing training
Medicare

Navigating Through the Essentials: Medical Billing Training for Beginners

September 12, 2023
rising drug costs
Pharmaceuticals

Reasons That Drug Prices Are Rising to Unsustainable Levels

September 8, 2023
Subscribe

Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!

Follow US
© 2008-2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?