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Take Control of Your Data During Data Privacy Week

27-31 January 2025 is Data Privacy Week, an international effort to raise awareness on how businesses and consumers can manage and protect personal data. iStorage is proud to be participating as a Data Privacy Week Champion Organisation with the National Cybersecurity Alliance.

Author: Shannon Dority, Marketing Manager iStorage

This week is an extension of Data Privacy Day, which commemorates the signing of EU Convention 108 on January 28, 1981. Known as the Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data, it was one of the first legally binding international treaties on data protection, focusing on protecting the privacy rights of individuals and how their data is accessed. It has been 44 years since the convention was signed, and while the digital landscape has drastically changed since, the importance of data privacy has become more important now more than ever.

Taking Control of your Data

More and more of our lives are conducted online, creating a plethora of data about every aspects of our lives. While we may not have control on how our data is collected through the websites and apps we interact with, all consumers have a right to data privacy and a say in how their data is managed. In the ever increasing digital frontier we find our lives intertwined in, here are some steps you can take to regain control of who has access to and how your personal data is used.

Update your Privacy Settings

The app, websites and smart devices we use daily are constantly collecting data on us to build up a profile of who we are. However, every touch point we interact with online has privacy and security settings that we have the ability to take control of to limit the amount of data collected and processed. Take the time to look over these settings on all of your devices and adjust the settings to your comfort level. The National Cybersecurity Alliance has created a resource where you can find information on how to adjust the privacy settings of popular apps and platforms.

Understand the Privacy and Convenience Tradeoff

The apps we download are aimed at making our daily lives easier. However, in order to access them many will require some personal information exchange and gain full access to other information on your device (photos, contacts, location, etc.) Collecting this information is very valuable for these businesses, but what is the tradeoff? How much information are they are asking for? Is it relevant to the nature of the app? Are you able to control the settings of the app? If you have not used it in months, is the app worth keeping around? These are the tradeoff questions you should ask yourself when using new and existing apps on your devices and if the data exchange in order to use them is worth it in the end.

Follow Basic Cybersecurity Tips

Taking simple cybersecurity steps such as creating complex passwords, multi-factor authentication, setting automatic software updates and learning how to spot phishing activities can help to protect your data privacy. We have provided more in-depth information in our previous blogs on how to set these up and remain cybersafe while online.

Know Your Data Rights

With over 160 data privacy regulations worldwide, chances are your data is protected by legislation with the jurisdiction that you live in. In many cases, there are multiple data protection laws at work that you can utilise for your benefit of protecting your data. Understanding these laws and how they regulate how personal data can be collected, used, and stored is a powerful step in controlling and protecting your own data. Resources such as the UN Trade and Development website are a great start to knowing which legislation your data is protected by and taking steps to ensure your information is being upheld to the standards set out in these laws.

Back Up Your Data

Make this a regular habit to ensurie you have multiple encrypted backups of your data and important files. This is an important is an important safeguard in the event of a cyberattack, helping you to save time and money in regaining access to critical information. Using a hardware encryption module to encrypt data stored in the cloud and/or an offline encrypted backup is an important option to include in your data hygiene practices, as it can provide that extra level of reassurance and security. Taking that critical extra step, in protecting your data by storing it offline in an encrypted flash drive or portable HDD/SSD, out of the hands of criminals, can act as an essentially unbreakable safe and can make the world of difference in protecting your valuable data.

10 Data Privacy Statistics for 2025

- Globally, 85% of adults want to do more to protect their online privacy. (Norton)

- 91.1% of businesses would prioritise data privacy if they knew it could increase customer trust and loyalty. (Termly)

- 33% of consumers would lose trust in an organisation that uses their data to offer them products or services from another organisation. (International Association of Privacy Professionals)

- 84% of users are more loyal to companies with strong security controls. (Salesforce)

- 120 countries around the globe have established privacy and security regulations that protect residents’ data privacy and security. (Securiti)

- Organisations strongly support privacy laws around the world, with 80% indicating legislation has had a positive impact on them (Cisco)

- 62% of business leaders say their company should do more to strengthen existing data protection measures. (KPMG)

- Companies process 56% more deletion requests than access requests. (HelpNet Security and DataGrail)

- 50% of consumers believe governments should take the lead in data privacy initiatives, while 21% said organisations should. (Cisco)

- 25% of employees feel their workplace doesn’t prioritise data privacy and security. (Zipdo)

iStorage | Kanguru

We have a wide range of products that can suit those on a budget, with some of our hardware encrypted products starting at only £49, to desktop drives holding up to 24 TB to store both your personal and company’s most vital data in an ultra-secure, offline device.

Our datAshur PRO+C flash drive holds the distinction of being the world’s sole flash drive that has received the FIPS 140-3 Level 3 certification! It is a user-friendly USB 3.2 (Gen 1) Type-C flash drive (Type-C to Type-A adapter included) that combines ease of use with top-level security measures. It employs PIN protection and hardware encryption to safeguard your data to military-grade standards. Available in various capacities ranging from 32GB to 512GB, this innovative device ensures your information remains secure.

Our diskAshur3 range boasts the most advanced security features, recently passed the CAVP (Cryptographic Algorithm Validation Program) testing as part of the FIPS 140-3 Level 3 validation scheme that the products are currently being evaluated against. This includes three encryption modes (patent pending), and user-configurable PINs ranging from 8 to 64 digits. The new range incorporates all the essential features of other iStorage products such as ease of use, platform independence and tamper-proof sleek designs.

And our unique and patented iStorage cloudAshur hardware security module is the perfect solution for anyone wanting to securely store, share and manage data in the cloud. cloudAshur can also be used to encrypt data stored on a network drive, on a local PC/MAC and to send encrypted email attachments or data via file sharing software applications eliminating all the security vulnerabilities that exist with cloud platforms, such as lack of control, unauthorised access and human error.

Our latest products from Kanguru deliver a wide range of flash drives, hard drives, SSDs, NVMe and other ideal data storage products. Whether you are looking for the best military grade, FIPS Certified, TAA Compliant, GDPR hardware encryption products and remote management for your high security organisation, or just a simple data storage solution for the home, Kanguru has many flexible options to choose from. Kanguru also specialises in duplicators for Hard Drives, SSD, NVMe, DVD, Blu-ray and USB duplication for all types of cloning jobs whether extensive, simple one-offs, or with secure erase for meeting GDPR standards.

If you are looking to take control of your data and keep it out of the hands of cybercriminals year-round, speak to one of our company representatives now to see what would be best for you.

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