Does Your Privacy Policy Need to Be Updated?

Nearly every day, we hear news reports about another data breach, computer hack, or virus to watch out for, all looking for one thing: personal information. As a business owner, you owe it to your employees and customers to protect sensitive data and do everything in your power to protect it against security threats.

While intrusions into your privacy can happen every time you leave the house, make a call, or enter a business, you might not be aware of it. When entering a business establishment, signs will often be posted advising cameras are in use and you are giving consent to be recorded by entering the premises.

While you might not record customers who enter your business, you do have access to a lot of their data if you collect payments, process orders, or some other function. In this blog, we’ll explain what a privacy policy is and why you need to keep it updated to protect the privacy of employees, clients, and customers.

What is a privacy policy?

A privacy policy is a document that explains how and why your company uses personal information about its clients, customers, and employees. It also describes the options users have to limit how their data is used and what happens if they decide to no longer allow the information to be shared.

A privacy policy doesn’t have to be long; it just needs to state why you need the information, how long you need to keep it, and how it will be stored.

Why You Need a Privacy Policy

The most important part of a privacy policy is explaining how your company will keep users’ information safe. Whether you have a small business or are part of a larger corporation, everyone who comes into contact with sensitive data should know about the privacy policy, what data is collected, and who can access it.

If you do not have a privacy policy in effect, then there is no way for anyone to know what information is collected about them or why the information is collected in the first place. The rules on privacy are constantly changing, and if companies don’t keep up with the latest changes, it’s possible the company could be liable if users’ data is exposed.

Reasons to Change a Privacy Policy

There are many reasons you might need to change your company’s privacy policy. Your organization could change ownership, offer new products and services, or process payments differently.

Another reason why it might be time to update your privacy policy is if new rules and regulations are passed. Many countries have enacted laws to protect citizens from afar, and many American states continue to assess and pass the same laws to protect individual rights.

Steps to Create or Update a Privacy Policy

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is the organization in charge of regulating privacy policies in the United States to protect personal information. It has practical steps businesses can use to implement or update privacy policies to protect sensitive information better.

Step 1: Review your documents and personal information and how it is stored. This includes working with each department and checking computers, phones, external hard drives, and other electronic equipment. The review should also include hard-copy documents like credit card receipts, old job applications, and personnel files.

Step 2: Purge all records no longer used for current business practices. If documents for taxes or credit reports are needed for a specific time, make a notation when the paperwork can be removed from storage.

Step 3: Secure the information you need to keep in your system and only allow access to qualified personnel. Additionally, it’s a good idea to check your virus and malware protection to ensure you have the latest updates to safeguard against new security threats.

Step 4: Destroy the information you no longer need according to proper procedures mandated by current laws. An easy way to accomplish this task is by using secure data shredding services.

Step 5: Decide to update the privacy policy yourself or have a legal firm do it. Many firms can handle this task easily, so don’t be afraid to seek help.

Schedule Your Appointment Today

At PROSHRED® San Diego, we can handle all your document destruction tasks onsite, so sensitive information is always secure. We want to help keep the sensitive data of your employees, clients, and customers safe. Contact us today to learn more about our onsite paper shredding services and to schedule an appointment!