South Africa is currently home to a lot of companies that offer their services to individuals while their company’s IT infrastructure is not POPIA (Protection of Personal Information Act) compliant.
From 1 July 2021, the POPI act became compulsory and owners can now face hefty fines or imprisonment for any data breaches. We all know the POPI Act is very important for businesses that collect information or personal data belonging to individuals.
This law ensures that all data and information are protected and stored securely from data breaches. So if you are processing data of individuals you must make sure your company’s IT unit takes extra security measures to secure this data.
Below we’ll discuss some of the reasons why every company’s IT infrastructure should be POPI compliant. We will also talk about how companies can prevent data breaches.
Improved reputation
If your company is POPI compliant, more individuals will probably do business with you because their privacy is guaranteed. Your reputation as a company will be improved because people will know you are compliant with the law and this will help you increase their trust in your brand.
Increased security
If your company’s IT infrastructure is not POPI compliant, your company has not taken any measures to increase processed data and information security. This may lead to loss of data when there’s a cyber-attack. Every company’s IT infrastructure that’s POPI compliant takes extra steps to protect processed or stored data, limiting the risk of a data breach.
How companies can prevent data breaches
When we talk about data breaches as an IT company, there are several measures you can to take to prevent data breaches. Below are some of these measures:
Use only updated software
At ASG, we make sure we use the latest software for our IT services and this allows us to protect processed data from cyber-attacks. Updated software usually comes with better security, patching of any vulnerabilities and compliance with data protection laws.
Encrypt all data
One way to prevent data breaches is to encrypt the data and information of individuals. This will assist in ensuring that even when a cyberattack takes place, encrypted data cannot be accessed.
Risk assessment
Another way to prevent data breaches is to carry out routine IT assessments. This will give you an overview of how your company’s data is secured. If you run a company that has an internal IT unit, it is essential to outsource your IT assessment to an external IT company. This is to ensure scrutiny of all the claims made by your internal IT unit and to be sure that your company’s IT infrastructure is actually POPI compliant.
Vulnerability assessments
There are various vulnerability assessments available that can assess your company’s network and help ensure a swift and effective analysis on your company with a comprehensive report and response plan.
Assessments are offered by your local IT company and more information can be found about POPI compliance assessments on ASG’s website.
ALSO READ: POPIA is in effect, but be careful with your data
