Data Protection Day

Data Protection Day History

Data Protection Day raises awareness for data protection and seeks to promote good data privacy practices. Everything that we do online leaves digital footprints. These scraps of data might seem unimportant, but they add up and create a picture of you. In 1981, the Council of Europe signed the Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data, known as Convention 108. The bill was signed because computers and automatic processing were becoming more and more widespread. Convention 108 outlawed processing sensitive data based on a person’s race, politics, religion, or sexual life in the absence of proper legal safeguards.

Although, the original focus of the Day was on businesses, wide usage of the internet has expanded the scope to include families, consumers, and institutions. On this day, parents are encouraged to educate their children on how to act online in a safe manner in order to protect themselves and their personal data. Data Protection Day is observed annually on the 28th of January, the same day on which Convention 108 was signed in 1981. The day was first celebrated in 2007 as the European Data Protection Day with the United States recognizing it in 2009

Top facts and quotes about Data Protection Day

• Data Protection Day celebrates the first legally binding international law regarding data protection.
• According to IBM, in 2023, the global average cost of a data breach was $4.45 million.
  According to IBM, in 2022, the average cost of a data breach grew from $3.43 million to nearly $4.5 million.
• According to the UK Government, in 2023, 32% of businesses and 24% of charities reported being cyber-attacked.
  According to the UK Government, in 2022, 39% of UK businesses reported being cyber-attacked. The most common threats were phishing attempts, malware, and ransomware attacks.
• Never before has the threat of intrusion to people’s privacy been such a risk. It is no wonder that the public now ranks protecting personal information as the third most important social concern. – Richard Thomas, former UK Information Commissioner
• They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. – Benjamin Franklin

In the News and Trending for Data Protection Day

Top things to do for Data Protection Day

• Update your software! All of it! Software patches are important because in today’s deploy early, deploy fast model mistakes are sure to be found. Updating means that the latest security protocols will be installed. Windows users will need to check the Control Panel, Mac users will need to check the App Store or on each specific program.
• Who can see what you’re posting on Facebook? Leaving your settings on default might mean that strangers can see what you’ve been posting! Click the padlock in the top corner of your profile to see what you’re sharing
• Strengthen your passwords. Simple ways to strengthen them include using upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols. Longer is better, so think ‘passphrase’ not password.
• Install browser extensions to prevent companies from tracking your personal data. Browser extensions like Ad Block will disable certain forms of code and enforce others to make sure your connection is secure.
• Watch a documentary about data protection and internet rights, try the Oscar-winning Citizenfour (2014) or The Internet’s Own Boy (2014).