Aristotle once said, “The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet.” As privacy professionals, we know all too well the potential threat posed by human error when it comes to privacy-related matters and the need for an internal training program. Data breaches, non-compliance, and enforcement action are just a few of the consequences that can be easily avoided by providing employees with proper training and awareness. But privacy training isn’t all about preventing harm; when implemented in a way that is relatable and engaging, it can empower employees to handle data more efficiently and help develop consumer trust. In this blog, we highlight the top 5 reasons why privacy awareness training should be considered as an essential part of your compliance programs and how OneTrust can help.
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Top 5 Reasons Your Organization Needs Awareness Training
5. Keep employees up to date with the latest regulatory developments
Privacy regulations seem to be in a state of constant flux. In the last six months, in the US alone, there have been two comprehensive privacy acts passed both with differing obligations. The CPRA is also on the horizon, which will bring its own significant challenges. Looking further afield, the recently passed Personal Information Privacy Law in China will have far-reaching effects for global organizations and is said to be one of the strictest privacy laws around. Couple this with the guidance regularly published by supervisory authorities on topics such as data transfers, cookie consent, and artificial intelligence, and staying up to date with the latest developments can begin to feel overwhelming. However, by introducing regular privacy training to employees, organizations can help ensure that the most relevant, need-to-know information is circulated amongst those who regularly handle data.
4. Prepare employees for security incidents
Phishing, malware, ransomware, SQL injection, man-in-the-middle, spear-phishing… The list of potential cyber-security attacks goes on and the way that attackers are exploiting personal information databases is becoming more sophisticated. In a 2020 study, it was found that up to 88% of data breach incidents are caused by employee errors, and data protection authorities in Europe have issued fines totaling over €60 million for insufficient technical and organizational measures to ensure information security. Therefore, it is critical that front-line employees are prepared with an understanding of these attacks and the warning signs that a malicious party is attempting to gain unauthorized access to personal or proprietary information. Adding security courses with real-world examples into your privacy training program can present employees with the relevant knowledge and preparation for preventing potentially costly security and breach incidents.
Read the blog: New Wave of Ransomware Attacks Hits US Infrastructure
3. Build trust with your employees and customers
Privacy obligations touch every part of an organization, and functional team members all have their part to play in upholding privacy compliance. For teams such as marketing, HR, and sales, privacy may not be top of mind amongst a range of role-based responsibilities but creating a privacy-first culture across an organization is a crucial element for building consumer trust and maintaining corporate reputation. Regular training can bring function-specific privacy considerations back to the forefront with short, easily accessible modules helping to keep employees engaged and making privacy their first concern.
2. Meet obligations under global privacy regulations
Mandatory privacy training programs can be found in many of the world’s most wide-reaching privacy laws, notably, the GDPR states that organizations should monitor their compliance with the GDPR including raising awareness and training staff. Additionally, the CCPA outlines that businesses must ensure all individuals responsible for handling consumer inquiries about the business’s privacy practices are informed of all requirements of several sections of the law. Consequently, privacy training programs take on an additional layer of importance beyond achieving organizational goals. Compliance with training obligations can help demonstrate accountability with applicable laws as well as avoiding investigation and potential enforcement action from supervisory authorities.
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1. Demonstrate to customers that their personal information is protected
Trust is a multi-faceted objective for organizations and privacy plays a big part in achieving this. Consumers are becoming increasingly aware of privacy regulations and the individual rights that come with them. As such, consumers are becoming more and more interested in how organizations are protecting their personal information and incorporating this into their decision-making process. Having front-line employees kept up to date on your company’s privacy policies and the organizational measures being taken to protect personal information helps to foster relationships based on trust. Regular privacy training keeps employees on top of the latest policy updates and gives them a strong understanding of the appropriate terminology as well as helping to demonstrate organizational accountability.
How OneTrust Helps
OneTrust Awareness Training is an easily deployable solution for providing your employees with expertly developed privacy training courses. An ever-expanding course library of over 46 modules, available in over 30 languages, ensures that the most critical privacy knowledge is accessible across any organization. OneTrust Awareness Training combats low engagement by offering intuitive step-by-step modules, comprised of short 5-10 minute courses that include real-world examples, interactive features, and assessments. Additionally, Awareness Training is customizable allowing you to add your company’s logo, change the colors or fonts, and even customize your language. Detailed reports on completion metrics and course performance help you to monitor progress towards organizational goals, maintain visibility into your privacy training program, and help demonstrate compliance with the CCPA, GDPR, and LGPD.
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