Protecting customer data: a compliance essential as well as a competitive advantage

Customer privacy is no longer just an add-on for businesses; protecting confidential confidential information is now an essential part of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing programs as well as a key factor in customer attraction and retention.

According to strategy + business, in the United States a proposed law would require that companies with at least 10,000 digital files on individuals design a security system to protect sensitive records from unauthorized access. In addition, these companies would have to publish their data privacy procedures and conduct routine audits to evaluate vulnerabilities. Failure to follow these rules would result in fines and possible federal prosecution.

Customer privacy is much more than keeping customer information private. It also means knowing your customer and keeping customer information secure.

Security is proving to be increasingly difficult not because of hackers but because data is so portable.

Every week businesses are reporting missing computers and data: laptops have been stolen or CD's or memory sticks containing thousands of customer files have been misplaced. And computer files are not encrypted.

Or physical files are lost between offices and storage centres.

Customer privacy has now become customer security.