It may sound obvious but you can only claim that something is confidential if you keep it confidential.
A large number of reports of breaches of data privacy are based on events when confidential information simply wasn't kept secure: when filing cabinets were not locked up overnight, when files were left in the back of a car or laptops weren't password-protected.
How many times have you been in a lift when you see someone holding a file with private customer information displayed on the front? Most times it won't matter but if it is the phone number of a wife trying to protect herself from a violent husband or financial or property information about a customer then there could be serious consequences.
10 Spy Tips lists 10 ways in which information can be lost. People who want to access your information can do so with little effort. Most methods are not high-tech and rely on you doing things like leaving keys in desk drawers or discussing confidential matters in cafes.
Am I being paranoid? Read Paranoia by Joseph Finder.
UPDATE: 10 things you can do to protect your data
UPDATE 26 June: Australian IT reports that the details of 3500 customers from 18 banks, including names and account numbers, were lost when a classified computer dossier on Russian mafia "phishing" scams was misplaced by the Australian High Tech Crime Centre in April last year. A police officer with the AHTCC lost a memory stick - containing the dossier, between Sydney and London. The memory stick was not protected by a password or encryption.
Just because a person is paranoid doesn't mean everyone isn't out to get them. :)
Posted by: Reg Adkins | June 21, 2006 at 10:16 PM
.Everyone should have a love.Because love is pure.
Posted by: toryburch | January 21, 2011 at 01:39 PM