Tomorrow is Data Privacy Day, an annual celebration to “raise awareness and generate discussion about information privacy,” according to The Privacy Projects, the nonprofit organization dedicated to facilitating the role of consumer privacy and data protection.

Officially recognized by both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, Data Privacy Day is observed nationally and worldwide. Events are scheduled not only for January 28th, but through the month of February and are designed to be an opportunity for dialogue amongst all stakeholders – businesses, consumers, government agencies, and academics. The official  website contains lots of educational material for businesses and consumers alike from Data Privacy Day sponsors: http://dataprivacyday2010.org.

Kroll has long recognized the need for such awareness and dialogue, and find it particularly fitting that Data Privacy Day arrives just as we are announcing our involvement in a new education initiative for small business owners launched by the Better Business Bureau (BBB).

In an effort to help business owners create and implement effective data security strategies to protect their data and their customers, the BBB has teamed up with Kroll, Symantec, Visa, and NACHA – The Electronic Payments Association, to launch “Data Security—Made Simpler,” a free how-to guide that provides easy-to-understand information and turnkey resources to help small business owners prevent a data breach. The guide covers topics including developing data security policies, recognizing and fixing areas of weak security, building the business-customer trust relationship, and knowing what to do if a data breach occurs.

Introduction of the guide also marks the beginning of the BBB’s new national education initiative to help business owners reduce their risk of a data breach. You can view the guide at www.bbb.org/data-security.

Tags: Better Business Bureau, Data Privacy Day, information privacy awareness, The Privacy Projects

Categories: Data Security Industry.