The rise in AI and the lack of regulation around an evolving digital landscape has made our sensitive data more vulnerable than ever.
It’s crucial to take precautions to safeguard personally identifiable information (PII). Companies risk their reputations and financial security if they do not follow best practices for protecting this sensitive information.
For example, researchers have discovered that OpenAI’s ChatGPT can reveal people’s personal identification, according to Vice. And CSO notes that after Google released a patch to its Chrome browser, the search engine giant learned that it had a bug that exposed the personal data of billions of users.
Unfortunately, Google disbanded its machine learning privacy team in February 2024, meaning that products released for public consumption may be without sufficient protections for users and their data.
So, how can you ensure that your sensitive data is protected from threats? Let’s explore best practices for safeguarding your organization’s data.
What Is Personally Identifiable Information (PII)?
Personally identifiable information (PII) refers to information that you can use to infer the identity of a person indirectly or directly, such as their actual name or contact information, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
You’ll want to know how much of people’s data you’re currently gathering, which means it’s time to formulate company policies for identifying and safeguarding personally identifiable information.
Failure to protect PII from exposure to unauthorized individuals can result in fraud and identity theft, as well as crimes related to harassment and stalking.
Two Examples of PII
There are two main types of PII that you should be aware of:
Sensitive PII
Sensitive PII includes information contained in official documents, such as your social security number (SSN), driver’s license, passport, or credit card number.
Other sensitive PII can be found in fingerprints, X-ray scans, retina scans, and photos (especially of one’s face or other distinguishing characteristics), as noted by the U.S. Department of Defense.
Non-Sensitive PII
Non-sensitive PII is typically available from public sources (and is not routinely protected as a result), such as a person’s phone number, email, or home address.
Ordinary people might stumble upon a list of personally identifiable information (non-sensitive) on a public-facing website designed to help family members connect, for example.
5 Best Practices for Protecting PII at Your Organization
If you’ve already suffered a data breach or are concerned about cyber criminals stealing vital information, here are five best practices for you to use to safeguard PII:
1. Data Minimization
There’s no need for organizations to horde more personally identifiable information than necessary.
Good cybersecurity practices call for limiting how much information you gather and taking pains to store it in one location. This makes it easier to manage than if PII is spread among multiple systems, giving more potential points of access to hackers.
2. Encryption
Never leave PII exposed so anyone can easily read it.
Instead, use robust encryption as part of your security strategy. For example, encrypt connections between your organization’s server and websites to keep hackers from snooping on the data during transmission.
3. Access Control
Be on guard against employee access to PII.
The Department of Labor recommends that management provide written approval before workers can take sensitive information out of the office, documenting the rationale for removing this data.
At the same time, workers must be on guard against hackers engaging in social engineering to trick them into giving up login credentials. You can see how well workers protect PII by conducting a penetration test that shows how vulnerable your organization is in terms of data security. Penetration testing involves computer security professionals adopting the mindset of criminal hackers probing an organization for potential weak spots that could give out PII.
4. Regular Audits and Monitoring
To avoid catastrophic data breaches, you will want to schedule regular audits of your systems used for storing and transmitting PII.
With ongoing monitoring, cybersecurity professionals can spot a potential intrusion and isolate it to prevent further access and data theft.
5. Employee Training
You cannot make assumptions about your employees’ level of PII safety awareness, which underscores the importance of ongoing employee training.
Prudent organizations will instruct their staff, such as during the onboarding process for new employees and updated training to address new threats.
Safeguard Your PII with Comprehensive Cybersecurity Services
Without proper protections for PII, criminals can steal the identities of workers and customers, drain bank accounts, and gain unauthorized access to your intellectual property. If the PII you store is compromised, you can anticipate a major public relations disaster.
It can be challenging for organizations to follow best practices for safeguarding PII on their own. Tec-Refresh’s cybersecurity offerings provide a comprehensive range of services — including social engineering testing, penetration testing, and vulnerability assessments — that can help organizations create a fortified data landscape.
To ensure you’re properly protecting personally identifiable information, you should review your PII protection strategies — and we can help. Consider partnering with an MSSP such as Tec-Refresh for enhanced security and better protect your PII today.
