Evaluate your cybersecurity posture for Data Privacy Day

Mark Nunnikhoven - Distinguished Cloud StrategistJanuary 28, 20223 min read

We all know data is the most valuable modern currency there is, which is just one reason why Data Privacy Day exists. It’s a much needed annual reminder to everyone in building technology that our customers trust us with a very valuable resource.

But data or digital privacy is a tricky thing to define. Like privacy in the physical world, It has different meanings in different communities. Using very broad strokes– digital privacy gives you the confidence that the system you are using only uses your data and the data about you that you intend in the way that you consent.

How does that relate to cybersecurity?

Again, let’s step back and look at the goal of cybersecurity, which is to make sure that your systems work as intended and only as intended.

Yes, there is a formal definition of cybersecurity but I think focusing on the goal is much more productive!

Simply put, you can’t have digital privacy without strong cybersecurity. They are two sides of the same coin.

Privacy By Design

Put yourself in your customers shoes for a minute. They trust that you are going to use their data in the way that they intend and that you are going to protect that data as well. This trust is critical to your business’ success. How are you going to make sure that you are worthy of that trust?

First, you have to make sure that your system is behaving in the way you expect and that customer data is only accessed by authorized users. You have to make sure that you have a strong security practice.

Whether you’ve done it explicitly or not, your system needs to follow the privacy by design principles.

Well Built

If you take a look at the 7 principles for privacy by design. They are all aspects of a well built solution–a solution that is reliable and resilient.

This also aligns with the goals of the Well-Architected Frameworks promoted by AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud.

Sadly, you can’t design a perfect solution. These frameworks help builders design cloud systems that strike the right balance between several critical pillars.

Security is one of these core pillars.

Building a security solution requires balance–you need visibility into all aspects of the system in order to have the context to make better security decisions. This means that understanding where sensitive data—like user data—is stored and how it moves through the system is a prerequisite to securing that data.

Data Drives Data Privacy

Digital privacy is a user-centered view of the system you build, so it’s critical that you understand the users expectations for their data and design your system to meet or exceed those expectations.

The best way to do that is through a well-built solution. One that balances the critical aspects of cloud systems which means a system that makes reasonable tradeoffs between operations, performance, cost, sustainability, reliability, and security.

Throughout the day—and honestly the entire week leading up to today—a ton of great content has been shared under the hashtag #dataprivacyday.
Check out our latest episode on our LinkedIn live series, Life’s a Breach: Why Privacy is Priceless in the Cloud.

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