Private/Protected Information

What is Private/Protected Information when it comes to security?

Protecting consumer information has to be one's primary responsibility, regardless of whether your business accepts credit cards, provides healthcare, or offers any other services. You will gather many sorts of data for a variety of purposes depending on your business and sector, and each piece of data has a unique need for protection. Understanding the different forms of data that consumers share with you is the first step in securing client data. From there, one may discover the rules and regulations put in place to assist you in offering consumers protection and making the most of their data as you support the growth of your company.

The abbreviations PII, PPI, PHI, and PCI all stand for various categories of sensitive data.

1. PII, or Personally Identifiable Information refers to any information that can be used to identify an individual, such as a name, address, or social security number.
2. PPI, or Personally Protected Information is a concept used in the European Union to describe data that is thought to be sensitive and needs extra security. This contains details about racial or ethnic background, political preferences, and health information
3. PHI, or Protected Health Information refers to any details about a person's health or medical background. This data must be shielded against unauthorized disclosure in accordance with HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act).
4. PCI, or Payment Card Industry is a set of security requirements that apply to businesses that deal with credit card or other payment card data. For the purpose of preventing unauthorized access to or disclosure of this information, the PCI Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) defines standards.

These above abbreviations collectively refer to many categories of sensitive information that need extra security owing to the possible repercussions of a breach or unauthorized disclosure.