Data Privacy Day is an international event that occurs every year on 28th January. The aim of the day is to raise awareness of data privacy and protection both for consumers and businesses. Data Privacy Day was first created in 2006 by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, 16 years later it is celebrated globally.
What is the Convention 108?
In 1981, The Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data, also known as Convention 108 opened for signature in Strasbourg. This document was the first international agreement addressing the need to protect personal data. Convention 108 continues to be updated in accordance with modern technologies. Today it has 55 signatures from both Members and Non-Members of the Council of Europe including the United Kingdom, Romania, and Argentina.
Modernising Convention 108 to align with GDPR
In 2018 Convention 108 was modernised to keep in line with new laws, in particular the EU’s GDPR. This allowed non-EU countries to be able to adopt GDPR policies meaning everyone can share the same set of data protection principles. This became applicable to the UK in 2021 when they left the EU. The UK was still bound by Convention 108 as well as their own governing Data Protection Act 2018 which aligns with EU GDPR.
What is the Data Protection Act 2018?
The Data Protection Act 2018 controls how your personal information is used by organisations, businesses, or the government. When the DPA UK was bought into place, the demand for data protection jobs increased significantly. It was up to companies to review their existing processes and to ensure they have the appropriate levels of audit, control, access, and removal. The current laws mean companies who do not act accordingly can face severe consequences that could cost them thousands of pounds. Therefore, it is essential businesses continue to invest money into not only data protection jobs, but cyber security, and software development.
Why is Data Privacy Important?
COVID-19 saw a shift in remote working, and therefore the amount of data created significantly increased, with this saw a rise in cyber-attacks. 39% of businesses and 26% of charities reported having cyber security breaches in the last 12 months. If a business experiences a cyber-attack, they are at risk of leaking sensitive information, including client contact details and financial details putting their customers at risk of identity fraud and scams. Therefore, it is important for companies to invest in their data protection frameworks and privacy management programmes to remain compliant with data laws and retain customer trust and confidentiality.
Over the past 2 years, data protection jobs have increased by 300% with the average salary now being £58,000, which is 19% more than 2021. According to IDC (International Data Corporation), the amount of data created over the next three years will be more than the data created over the past 30 years. Therefore, the demand for data protection jobs will only continue to grow.
There are a number of different roles related to data privacy including: