Does your firm have access to your clients' personal information?
How would you feel if you had to tell each of your clients that a data breach
in your organization exposed their personal data? How would it affect your
business? Your reputation?
According to the
Privacy Rights Clearinghouse,
more than 250 million records containing personally identifiable information have been
compromised in the United States since 2005.
Some states, like
Massachusetts and
California, have strict guidelines for
reporting data security breaches to clients. In others, the rules are less stringent,
but even so, no one wants to be responsible for potentially exposing their clients to identity theft.
It's not just hackers cracking into systems and stealing files. Employees
bringing work home or emailing data without encrypting it can expose sensitive
personal data. No matter how it happens, the firm is responsible
for informing its clients and that costs in time, money, and damage to your reputation.
You've worked hard to build your business and earn the trust of your clients.
You owe it to them, and to yourself, to do everything you can to protect their
personal information.