When it comes to being responsible with protecting data, most organizations immediately think of their IT team, and, for larger organizations, the responsibility lands at the feet of the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO). Many business leaders are SHOCKED to find that their frontline staff members are often tasked with making critical decisions regarding the release of employees’ most sensitive data.
Below are some key thoughts that business leaders must consider in today’s business climate.
HR and Payroll staff members are involved in a daily process of responding to requests to verify employee’s current and historical information, including income details. These staff members try to respond to the verification requests as quickly as possible to ensure that loans, apartment rental approvals, and government assistance aren’t held up. These are all completed in and amongst their core job activities.
Business and security leaders are often unaware that these frontline staff members are burdened with the following:
Tasked with determining the validity of the request and whether or not to respond with the sensitive data.
Responsible to only release the precise data (historical as well as details) legally allowed.
Expected to track each response and secure the details for a number of years without allowing unauthorized access to the data.
Allowing employees with access to what activity has taken place against their personal data.
These four points are relatively simple and yet many leaders have no idea the burden of responsibility they place on these staff members.
Business Leaders need to consider the following: “What can I do to tighten our controls and make sure our staff is being completely SAFE every time they send employee data to a third party?”