Confidentiality is one of the basic business etiquettes. It not only boosts your client’s trust in you but also fulfils your legal responsibility by protecting sensitive information. In case if confidential information is leaked, your business may face terrible consequences. Therefore, you need to understand what actually confidentiality is, why is confidentiality important in business, and UK’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Let’s start with what exactly confidentiality is!
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What is Confidentiality?
Confidentiality is a set of rules that restricts the use of certain types of information that are confidential. You have to protect and secure confidential information as per the confidentiality agreements and policies. Confidential information is the secret information that is only provided to the receiving party through various sources. This information is kept hidden from the public due to multiple reasons. Confidential information may include:
- Personal information of someone
- Medical information
- Bank or credit card details
- Payroll number
- Business or marketing plan
- Research data
- Passwords and related IT information
- Financial information of a company
- Customers’ information and lists
Why is Confidentiality Important in Business?
Confidentiality is important in business to build trust. When reassured to protect the personal information of the client, it allows a smooth flow of information between employers and employees. Breaching confidentiality is not only an illegal offence, but it also destroys the trust and loyalty of the clients. Here are the points to know why confidentiality is important in business:
- builds trust and promotes confidence
- it protects the reputation of the large enterprises
- it prevents the illegal and immoral use of confidential information
- employment may depend on it (e.g. non-disclosure agreement).
- it ensures compliance with the law
UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
As per the Data Protection Act 2018, GDPR aims to improve the level of data protection used by third parties. They are levying penalties of up to €20 million to those who are not adhering to the data protection rules. Here are the main data protection principles that companies need to follow:
- Lawfulness, fairness and transparency
- Purpose limitations
- Data minimisation
- Accuracy
- Storage limitations
- Integrity and confidentiality
Quick Sum Up
That’s all about why is confidentiality important in business. Keeping confidentiality secure is not only our legal and ethical responsibility but it also plays a key role in building clients’ trust, improving business relationships, preventing misuse of information and protecting business reputation. Additionally, you need to comply with UK GDPR while dealing with confidential information to be on the safe side.
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Disclaimer: This blog is written for general information on the topic.