Apparently, we’re today kicking off the UK National Identity Fraud Prevention Week – and research for RSA reveals wide-spread disbelief (as in, 90% of Britons) that their personal data are safe with banks and retailers, and half the people think that not enough is done to protect these personal details.
That’s better than I thought! Let me explain: in today’s insecure world, everyone has to be concerned about his or her own personal data – this is a critical personal asset that needs safeguarding. And, for far too long, people have simply not been adequately concerned about this issue. Clearly, this is changing – let’s hope that, as more people learn about the poor care exercised by data controllers in the UK, they get better at insisting that adequate steps are taken – and voting with their feet where they are dissatisfied with the standard of care.
From an organisational point of view, of course, it’s not hard to respond to the findings of this research – take adequate steps, today, to comply with the Data Protection Act in the UK, or whatever data protection legislation applies in your business jurisdiction. If you accept payment cards, PCI DSS compliance should be a given. And, for every organisation, ISO27001 is the best practice standard for securing information – and this week would be a good week to get started on an ISO27001 project!
