What are the most effective ways to secure sensitive data in a small business?

The starting point for any data privacy program is Identifying what data is collected, its purpose, its storage, retention, deletion, etc. Data maps need to be drawn out - as accurately as possible to give maximum efficiency. This is not a difficult task in smaller organizations and can be easily done with a strategic plan. As a consultant I have advised many small organizations how to draw out data charts and with proper communication on "Why we are doing this" I have found that this task can be carried out seamlessly.

Part of implementation is also the governance of the operation: bake in a requirement of audit and review into the design and you're going to have substantially less push back for when it's time to evaluate if your risk approaches are adawuete or not.

Implementing data protection policies can be overwhelming. While I used to advice clients, I followed a simple Phased approach. For example, I would start by telling them which policies are the most important and which are good to have. Then we would focus on getting the Most Important policies in place, before moving to the rest. The management of any organization will be very happy if clear charts are drawn with timelines.

Data security tools are like the locks we put on our doors. No matter how much you tell your children to keep the house safe when the parents are away - locks play an important role in safeguarding. There are several players offering data security tools at affordable prices. I have deployed several tools such as VPN, cloud security, etc. and each tool safeguards a particular patch. Here it is very important to remember that the Risk Universe is vast, and all the sides need to be safeguarded. An organization once wanted to cut costs, so they only used security tools on their customer facing sites. They landed up paying triple in fines and penalties and lost their brand value as well.

Data assessments often are looked at as "additional work" With proper training, I have been able to mitigate this and ensure that each assessment is alive and detailed. I use the example of baking a cake with my clients. I tell them the recipe in short by leaving out key measurements and the result will be a flop. Therefore, every detail, every note, every change needs to be documented. Another important point is reassessments when there is any material change to the program/process. This is more of an ongoing process and must be documented from time to time depending on the nature of the changes.

Complying with the applicable regulations is a no-brainer. But it is important to comply with the law in letter and spirit. For example, an organization I worked for had great policies and procedures. But on the ground the implementation was missing. Soon enough we were picked up by the regulator, and our director faced the risk of imprisonment. That is when I had to jump in and work day and night to incorporate the data regulations on the ground and thus could protect my organization. With the different laws all over the world, one must not forget to key in the individual requirements. For eg. GDPR has certain obligations which CCPA does not mandate. A careful study is needed for this.