When To Disclose A Data Breach

iCloud security wake-up call, data brach

Secure document destruction methods must be in place to comply with Data Protection laws. A confidential document destruction service will benefit your business and its Data Protection.

Technology has brought us accessibility to a global market and small businesses have benefited greatly from this boom in technology. With a greater number of devices connected to an online service has also meant that a increase in the number of cyber attacks. Small businesses in particular are now being targeted.

A report from the Wall Street Journal has shown that small law firms are targeted the most due to the potential high profile client base they may have. That being said law firms do not usually hold social security information and the information obtained by hackers may not be beneficial to them.

Under American law, law firms are required to inform the public that a breach has occurred.

Data Protection Commissioner

Under Irish law the Data Protection commissioner has Data Breach guidelines for you and your business to follow. If a breach occurs it is paramount that the matter is dealt with swiftly to minimise damage. Data Protection Commissioner data breach guidelines can be found at the link below.

https://www.dataprotection.ie/docs/Data-Breach-Handling/901.htm

The document informs you on what steps to take if a breach has occurred. With this guide you can easily follow the steps needed to take and the information to provide when informing the Data Protection commissioner.

“Failure to comply with these obligations can result in a criminal prosecution with fines up to €5,000 indictment €250,000 per offence.” 

The document also state “Prevention is better than cure.” Setting up company policies and practices for handling of sensitive data should be implemented immediately. A reputable Shredding Service will also improve Data Security within your company. A shredding service will be able to provide an onsite shredding service. Confidential shredding is paramount to shredding services.

A reputable shredding service will comply with the protocols provided by the Data Protection Commissioner. It is a governing body to help protect your personal data and the data of others.

Please visit our site for more information on a Confidential Shredding Service:

https://www.securityinshredding.com/

Full Article Wall Street Journal Report:

https://blogs.wsj.com/law/2016/03/30/when-do-law-firms-have-to-disclose-data-breaches/ 

 

American college (TCC) affected by data breach

Security in Shredding Data protection & destruction

Onsite paper destruction and or offsite paper destruction are services provided with shredding companies in Ireland. “Shredding Paper Ireland” will provide you with a decent result when researching for an industrial paper shredding service.

In a recent story involving an American college in Virginia were subject to a data breach involving staff and their names and social security details. 15 of the college employees who had submitted their tax returns to the IRS (American version of Revenue Office) were later told that their tax had already being done using their social security number.

Approximately 3192 employees in the Virginia college system may have being effected by the breach. It appears the details of the leaked data containing the names and social security numbers may have being sent to a fake account from the college.

While this happened in America the method as to how it happened remains the same. A false account was created to look like an official college page. The page will have asked the user to enter in or provide specific data. These scams will prey on human error or uneducated person to transfer this data.

How to protect yourself from these attacks

If you feel your business has being subject to one of these attacks here are a number of things to look out for. If you use a regular paid service whatever the format, these services will have your name on record and will be able to display it on emails and documents.

  • “Dear Customer” can be an indication of something off. A reputable service will easily be able to display your name here instead of customer.
  • Asking you to click a link from the email itself rather than going through the official website of the service provider to pay for services.
  • Do not click on links you are uncertain of going through the service provider site itself is a good practice.
  • Asking for specific details is also a sign of malicious intent. Reputable sites do not ask for this information as information such as passwords are NOT known by the service provider as these are encrypted and only known by you.

What To Do If Breach Occurs

  • Alert the service provider that a breach has occurred
  • Alert relevant authorities such as banks, revenue office so they know to monitor irregular transactions.
  • Inform employees to change passwords to the relevant accounts
  • Inform customers that may have had their data accessed
  • Sooner the better you alert the authorities the quicker and less damaging the data breach will be

The full article involving the TTC can be read here:

https://www.13newsnow.com/news/local/mycity/virginia-beach/tcc-100-employees-affected-by-data-breach/110309810

For more information on data security please
visit:

https://www.securityinshredding.com/shredding-benefits.php

The Future Of Data Security

Secure Paper Shredding Hard Drive Shredding WEEE Destruction

Document shredding service are a vital part of Data Protection. Shredding services in Ireland when a clear out shredding is needed. Offsite shredding services can be incorporated into everyday business to comply with Data Protection laws and improving Data Security.

Siliconrepublic an Irish based article site recently posted an interesting article regarding the future of Data security. Data Security is now more than ever vital for businesses to succeed. Technology has continuously improved and grown over the past number of years. The devices used has greatly helped smaller businesses compete with larger companies. With all this growth in technology aspects of the technology have being lost or information about it has become confusing and conflicting.

Data Security with technology will always be a continuous process. Between encryption, mobile devices and cyber warfare means that there will be no end to this process. Security experts can only protect against known breaches. Hackers have a small window of opportunity to work with.

Data Security Small Business

What does this mean for your business. For one, hiring a confidential shredding service that is also reputable and recognised by governing bodies. A shredding service must comply with Data Protection laws. A shredding service implemented within your business will ensure that you are protecting your data and improving data security.

Data Security is more than just electronic devices and digital data. Paper also contains data. Sensitive data in particular must be accessed and handled correctly. Who has access to this data and how this data is destroyed when no longer in use. A shredding service will handle these documents and devices and destroy them in a confidential and secure manor. ISO 9001:2008 is a good mark to look out for before hiring a shredding service for your business.

This type of data is what hackers and criminals try to achieve and will prey on human error to obtain this data. Dumpster diving will occur and if your documents are not shredded or only used a simple office shredder will not securely destroy data. Digital data can be accessed easily if the data is not encrypted or has not being wiped correctly. USB keys should be kept securely in your possession if they contain data. When shredding ask for the DIN level of shredding required to ensure secure data destruction.

Awareness to these methods is paramount to the success of your business and Data Security. If a data breach occurs then your business can be liable and receive a hefy penalty.

Read the full article here:

https://www.siliconrepublic.com/enterprise/2016/03/24/cybersecurity-future-of-security-hackers

Details for a confdential shredding service please visit:

https://www.securityinshredding.com/

Electric Ireland Phishing Scam Warning!

irish data breaches, Data Protection, Paper Shredding, Data Destruction

A Confidential document destruction service is one among many means of a businesses Data Protection. Data breaches can come in many forms and one method of a data breach is phising. When you hear reports of accounts being hacked or customer details have being released, this is one such method of doing this.

So what is phising?

A simple Google search of this question will provide you with the following answer

“the fraudulent practice of sending emails purporting to be from reputable companies in order to induce individuals to reveal personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers, online.”

It is common for these type of scams to target high profile companies with a large customer base. Hackers can produce “official” looking emails to trick people into giving their details. There are steps to help protect you against these type of attacks.

Below is an example of the malicious email in circulation:

Screen Capture of malicious email

Read the full article here:

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/news/electric-ireland-warns-customers-over-sophisticated-phishing-scam-34587520.html

The article writes that the scam was asking customers click a link and enter their username and password. The way the email is worded to convince you that it is official. To the uneducated person this will look and feel official. Asking for your details in this manner is suspicious.

Also “Dear Customer”  should not be there. If it was an official statement then Electric Ireland would have your name in place of customer. Electric Ireland will have your name on storage and will be able to use it in documents.

The links to click are also displayed in a way to deceive you creating a link can be displayed to say anything.

Prevention against phising

  • If you suspect something the report it immediately as the company may not be aware of the issue.
  • Do not click on the links on the email and go through the Electric Ireland site to login
  • If you clicked on the link and feel your details were obtained then change your password immediately and report it to Electric Ireland.
  • Avoid clicking links that display as “here” or “Click Here” etc these can be misleading
  • Asking for your details through email is common practice.
  • Report any suspicious activity.

Microsoft have a detailed list to help protect you against phising scams. Awareness is key to scams like these the more you know the easier it is to protect your data and company reputation from data breach.

Microsoft Tips: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/online-privacy/phishing-faq.aspx

For more information on Data Protection please visit our shredding specialist site

Data Destruction What Is It?

harddrive destruction, Media Destruction, Confidential Shredding Service

Off site document destruction and or onsite document destruction can be implemented for a purge clear out in business. Secure document shredding services in the Dublin area and throughout the country are necessary to comply with Data Protection laws.

Data destruction is the process of destroying data stored on tapes, hard disks and other forms of electronic media so that it is completely unreadable and cannot be accessed or used for unauthorized purposes. A good data destruction process in your company or business will ensure you are complying with data protection laws. Protecting sensitive data is paramount for a business and if data breaches occur a business or company will receive a hefty penalty if a breach occurs.

On Site Media Destruction Service

Incorporating a on site media destruction service to your daily business will benefit both you and your customers. In today’s market any form of a data leak or breach is a make or break for business and in particular for e-commerce businesses. A reputable confidential shredding service should be sought when the service is needed.

There are a number of reasons for getting your media and a good shredding service will be able to provide most of the following:

 

  • Hard Drive Shredding – Large Quantities

  • Data Erasure

  • Hard Drive Degaussing

  • Hard Drive Crushing

  • Hard Drive Shredding

  • Lockable Bins for Hard Drive Storage

  • Tape Destruction

  • Remote Employee Services

Off Site Media Destruction

Services needed do not always require an on site destruction. Medium to large businesses can avail of off site destruction service where bulk destruction can take place. A good and reputable shredding service would be able to accommodate this.

Knowing weather to go for a on site or off site service will come down to the business owner or manager and enquiring with the shredding service as to which option is recommended and most shredding services will offer free consultation.

Data Destruction Shredding Process

The shredding process of hard drives will occur in a secure environment and is destroyed beyond reconstruction to ensure its security Below is a video description of the shredding process.

 

For more information on Data Destruction and Data Protection or have any enquires about a confidential shredding service please visit:

https://www.securityinshredding.com/

 

Data classification and identification

Security In Shredding on site service, Onsite shredding service

Confidential shredding in Cork and throughout the country can incorporate a off site document shredding service to promote good business practice.

Internal Data classification and identification is when an Organisation tags their data so it can be managed effectively, securely processes, found quickly and destroyed appropriately.

It is a beneficial exercise for many Organisations as it helps to de-duplicate data stored on devices, this de-duplication vastly speeds ups data searches while also saves upon revenue in the form of storage capacity and back-up requirements for a given Organisation.

This exercise is also required for Organisations who need to meet legal and regulatory requirements for destroying the information beyond reconstruction, not holding information longer than necessary in addition to enabling an Organisation to retrieve specific information within a set timeframe.

Data strategies vary significantly from one organisation to another for many reasons. For example, many may generate different types and volumes of data that are subject to differing legislative requirement and responsibilities. The balance of information type can vary from one user to the next between e-mail correspondence, images, video files, office documents, customer and product information, financial data just to name a few.

It may seem a good idea to tag and classify everything within your Company database however experts here and abroad advise against this due to high costs and success rates within Organisations. Certified database technology is available for Organisations however; this method seems to work best for Governments with an allocated budget for the activity.

Alternatively, it is advised that Organisations can choose certain types of data to classify into the main segments of your business, for example; account data, personal data and commercially valuable data.

It is advised that an Organisation’s data is to be classified in line with their confidentiality requirements. It is important to carry out an information audit at this stage which in turn will give you an accurate view of the nature of the data.

It is essential for an Organisation to ensure that the data it is classifying is of good quality, “Common pitfalls for Organisations is that too much rubbish is allowed to accumulate, from duplication to copies of office party photos to personal letters to bank managers”, storage cleansing technologies are extremely useful at this stage to eliminate obsolete, trivial or redundant content.

Once the classification system is up and running it is important that management and staff take part in periodic reviews as it is not set in stone and business developments can translate to design changes in data classification.

Once the data has been classified an Organisation is empowered with the ability to tailor procedures for specific data in order to maintain regulatory compliance.

Secure Destruction of Sensitive data.

When destroying information whether it be hard paper data or digital data on data carriers it is essential for Organisations to ensure that they comply with regulations and are not proving to be negligent in their processes. For this reason, we have constructed three different protection classes for data that requires specific attention to ensure that the material has been destroyed appropriately.

 

Protection Class

Risk

 

Protection 1:Normal security requirement for internal data Unauthorised publication or dissemination would have a limited negative impact on the company. Protection of personal data must be ensured. There would otherwise be a risk to the position and financial situation of the affected persons.
  Protection 2:High security requirement for confidential data
Unauthorised dissemination would have a considerable effect on the company and could infringe legal obligations or laws. A personal data data-breach would result in considerable risk to the social standing and financial situation of the affected persons.
  Protection 3:Very high protection requirements for particularly confidential and secret data. Unauthorised dissemination would have serous terminal consequences for the Company and infringe upon trade confidentiality, place a data subject at risk of safety or freedom, break contracts and legal law.

It is essential that the confidentiality of personal data is maintained.

 

Destruction Tips;

Protection Class 1:

Destruction activities must be carried out in line with a detailed procedure, all staff carrying out destruction activities are to be trained. Alternatively, destruction processes are to be implemented and provided through a data processing firm receiving all data processing certificates for completion of destruction. All data is to be destroyed to shred No. 3 of EN 15713.

Protection Class 2:

Destruction processes of data in protection class No. 2 are to be implemented and provided through a data processing firm receiving all data processing certificates for completion of destruction. All data is to be destroyed to a minimum of shred No. 3 of EN 15713. The data processor must be registered for their services.

Protection Class 3:

Destruction processes of data in protection class No. 3 are to be implemented and provided through a certified data processing firm receiving all data processing certificates for completion of destruction. All data is to be destroyed to a minimum of shred No. 5 of EN 15713. The vendor must be independently certified to destroy paper and digital data beyond reconstruction and they must be registered for their services with the policing authority in the relevant Country.

Visit: https://www.securityinshredding.com/ for more information on a confidential shredding service.

Data Protection Ireland Today

Data proccesser and data commissioner

Secure document destruction in Ireland can come in the form of an onsite paper shredding service or an off site paper shredding service. Data comes in many forms and The Data protection Act is in place to ensure that this data is protected.

Data Protection is a vital for a business to succeed and remain in business. If customers or users know that your service does not protect your data. It will be a massive loss to business and business reputation. Your business can suffer from a severe penalty for not protecting your data.

An interesting article written by Colm Gorey titled “3 issues defining data protection in Ireland today  The issues discussed are relevant to today’s business. The 3 topics discussed were:

  1. ISO 27018: Cloud computing privacy standard – one year on

  2. Personal data and your right to access it — Ireland vs the UK

  3. Challenges to data protection under the internet of things

The first point talks about the governing of personal data through cloud based systems. Standards have being created to ensure the protection of data and were received well by Data Security experts. The ISO 27018 standard can be read here. Cloud computing has become a major asset to business functionality and knowing what cloud based systems are doing with your data should be investigated and researched when changes if any occur.

The second point refers to Irish and English law. Although both countries have similarities the law for each country does vary and in particular with personal data and access to it. Your business must abide by the rules in place of the country it is based in. A good example of how country laws differ can be read at this link.

Awards of Damages for Data Protection Breaches – UK and Irish Approaches Contrasted

Thirdly the internet of things (IOT) refers to the general use of internet and internet services. Governments and official bodies are trying to develop ideas or frameworks that will regulate the internet of things. What has happened is the EU 28 data protection bodies.

for more information on data protection and a confidential shredding service please visit: https://www.securityinshredding.com/

 

 

Data Protection A Human Right

Amnesty International Data Protection a Human Right

Confidential document destruction services are vital part of business data protection. paper shredders / shredding services in Ireland have governing bodies in place to enforce and ensure people are complying with Data Protections laws.

“Encryption is a basic prerequisite for privacy and free speech in the digital age. Banning encryption is like banning envelopes and curtains. It takes away a basic tool for keeping your private life private,” said Sherif Elsayed-Ali, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Global Issues.

It can be hard to comprehend the benefit of encryption when using a device. What happens in the background on devices and applications can even confuse even the most informed individual. The above statement from Elsayed does put it into perspective. With a major organisation such a Amnesty international in support for data protection, ensuring your business protects its data needs to be paramount.

The Data Protection Act is an EU standard that ensures that the access and movement of personal data is protected accordingly. These standards are in place to protect your personal information. Online usage has grown and is still growing. Access to online services and devices to use it are widely available in particular mobile devices are now becoming the no.1 method of transactions for e-commerce sites.

Using these sites or services requires and stores personal data and this data is sensitive and businesses must ensure that this data is protected. If a business does not secure its data it can be ruin a companies reputation and not to mention the penalties for a data breach from unsecured data.

There are many ways to store and display data. Weather it is electronically or paper, if it contains sensitive data it needs to be stored and destroyed securely. A document destruction service should be sought when destroying documents. A simple office shredder will not securely destroy your documents.

Media devices such as hard drives if being replaced or recycled should be destroyed if they contain sensitive data. Wiping the drive or formatting the drive does not remove the data entirely and can be retrieved.

Din 66399 Standard is a standard set for paper shredding. This standard ensures the highest security when shredding documents and devices. When hiring a reputable shredding service this standard should be sought after.

For more information on a confidential shredding service please visit:  https://www.securityinshredding.com/

Read Amnesty International full report here:

https://www.amnestyusa.org/research/reports/encryption-a-matter-of-human-rights

Data Processors And Data Commissioner

Data Protection Commissioner

Mobile Paper shredding throughout Ireland and the companies that provide confidential document destruction are governed by Data Protection laws and the Data Protection commissioner. This can be broken down into two parts.

Data Processors

Security in Shredding are registered Data Processors with the Data Protection Commissioners Office. So what is a Data Processor one may ask; a Data Processor is a company, organisation or person who processes data on behalf of a Data Controller. “This does not include employees who process data in the course of their employment.”

“Cloud providers are also generally Data Processors.”

“It is possible for one company or person to be both a data controller and a data processor, in respect of distinct sets of personal data. For example, a payroll company would be the data controller in respect of the data about its own staff, but would be the data processor in respect of the staff payroll data it is processing for its client companies.”

“A data processor is distinct from the data controller for whom they are processing the personal data. An employee of a data controller, or a section or unit within a company which is processing personal data for the company as a whole, is not a “data processor.” However, someone who is not employed by the data controller, but is contracted to provide a particular data processing service (such as a Security in Shredding providing and conducting a confidential secure data destruction service) would be a data processor.

Responsibilities of data processors

The Data Processor must only process personal data on the instructions of the Data Controller, for example, the Client (the Data Controller) schedules an on-site service delivery where by Security in Shredding (the Data Processor) arrives on-site to conduct on-site shredding of the clearly identified material for destruction. The responsibilities concern the necessity to keep personal data secure from unauthorised access, disclosure, or destruction unless confirmation is received prior to doing so.

“In addition all data processors, whose business consists wholly or partly in processing personal data on behalf of data controllers who are required to register, are also required to register with the Data Protection Commissioner as a data processor.”

For further information about Data Processors please click on any of the following website addresses;

www.securityinshredding.com

www.dataprotection.ie

www.aurthercox.com

Also available in the Limerick area and please visit:

www.securityinshredding.com/limerick-shredding-services.php

Choosing A Shredding Service Dublin Area

Importance of Paper Shredding for Dublin

Secure document shredding services are available throughout Dublin and greater Dublin area. Onsite paper shredding services in Dublin are available to benefit you and ensure your documents are securely dealt with.

Data protection and Data destruction methods are now mandatory for all businesses. The Data Protection Act requires you to have these methods in place or you could be liable for any data breaches if they occur. Sensitive or personal data that is not secured is often the cause of identity theft. It can easily be done if documents are not securely destroyed.

Before choosing a shredding service, it is worth researching the shredding service before using them.

What to look for when choosing a shredding service:

A Compliant Secure Shredding Service

Ensuring that the shredding service is both professional and secure in its business document destruction. The Din 66399 and EN 15713 standard should be sought when choosing your shredding service. This is a European standard and shredding companies must comply by these standards.

What to Shred

If your business uses and or posses a person’s information, then a shredding service is required and should be implemented by all organisations.

The link details the kind of information that needs to be shredded.

What To Shred

On Site Document Destruction Service.

A reputable shredding service will be able to call out to your premises regardless of location. The on site call out can save you and your organisation on time and effort and the document destruction can also be supervised by a member of staff to ensure documents are being destroyed in a professional manner.

Shredding Volumes

It is also worth researching the volumes of paper a shredding company can handle for your business. Your business or organisation may have a large quantity of documents with your own and other sensitive information that you don’t want accessible to people outside of the company.

References

Enquiring with other companies that use a shredding service in their business is worth looking into. It is important to know how the shredding service works and if it will apply to your own organisation. if the shredding company has satisfied customers is worth researching before committing to the service.

For more information on secure document and bulk paper shredding please visit:

https://www.securityinshredding.com/