It’s imperative, in today’s increasingly complex regulatory environment, to be aware of consumer protection regulation rules. In 2020, protecting your customer’s data and privacy has never been more important.

Why’s that?

Read on to learn five benefits of implementing strong data protection policies.

 

1. Remaining Compliant With the Law

First thing’s first. You never want to run a business that’s breaking the law. Not only will you get into legal trouble, but it’s also unlikely you’ll find success.

In 2018, the European Union’s GDPR regulations went into effect. GDPR stands for general data protection regulation, and it applies to US businesses in many cases. If you hold onto data from an EU citizen, then you could get held accountable, and the fines are no joke. They can be up to 4% of the previous year’s revenues. And California recently passed a similar law called the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), which is similar in many ways.

Breaking this international law could mean significant fines for your business, because these privacy laws are here to stay and it’s almost certain that more states and countries will follow.

 

2. Build Trust

One of the best benefits of promoting customer data safety is the trust you’ll build.

Customers want you to protect their sensitive data. They’re discouraged by the traditional identity verification methods as being inadequate, annoying and not secure enough to prevent breaches. So, implementing stronger protections will help you build trust with your customers.

If you can build trust while providing an exceptional customer experience, you will delight and retain your customers.

On top of that, you’ll also gain trust with investors and the public. As a result, your business will grow faster. You’ll be able to build up your brand as reputable and competitive and, of course, stay out of the crosshairs of regulators.

 

3. Prevent a Data Breach Disaster

Insufficient data protection will lead to a data breach at some point. Data breaches have the potential to blow up your business and create long term issue that may be difficult to recover from.

Don’t believe us? In 2019, businesses lost over $2 trillion to cybercrime. Data breaches cause a whole host of problems for a business including:

  • Angry customers
  • Revenue loss
  • Damage to your brand
  • Loss of intellectual property
  • Fines

At its worst, a data breach can destroy your brand and business. No one wants to work with someone who won’t protect their confidential information.

 

4. Make Better Business Decisions

How often do you use targeted ads as a part of your marketing strategy? Many consumers find this creepy, and whether you truly are invading their privacy or not, they may believe you are encroaching on their privacy. So be careful about when and how much you employ this strategy

Modern-day marketers often use a person’s individual data, but they’re not the only ones. You might also be using customer data to make business decisions. Do you automate approvals or denials based on a person’s data?

There’s a whole lot of room for error when making automated decisions and you’ll want to be sure that you are thoughtful with how you use targeted advertising.

 

5. Stay Ethical

Does your business have an established code of ethics? Even if you don’t, it’s crucial to act ethically if you want to have a successful business. It’s a great idea to publish your company’s attitudes to data security and privacy and to ensure that you have the best digital security tools in place that protect your customers.

Stronger data protection is in alignment with ethical practices. Show your customers you care by protecting their information from nefarious hackers.

 

If You’re Not Ahead, You’re Behind

These five crucial tenets of data protection are only the tip of the iceberg. Data protection isn’t only desirable for customers, but it’s also the law. Running afoul of the law will cause major consequences that will not be pleasant.

Here’s the deal. If you can created a trusted digital identity that is highly secure and maintains privacy with a fantastic customer experience, you will not only comply with privacy regulations, you will earn customer’s loyalty and future business. It’s so flexible and easy to implement and use, you’ll wish you’ve had it all along.

Our “Zero Knowledge” network uses advanced cryptographic techniques to individually encrypt sensitive data, only providing a certificate of pass/fail to the agent helping the customer. The user experience is fast and elegant, and businesses reap many operational, risk and cost benefits by streamlining the authentication process. And compliance with privacy laws is baked in by nature.

Visit us at www.journeyidstage.wpengine.com to request a demo or read more.