What is Data Privacy week?
This year, the National Cybersecurity Alliance (NCSA) has expanded its Data Privacy Day to a week! Data Privacy Day started in 2008 as a North American complement to Data Protection Day in Europe.
The purpose of Data Privacy Week is to help “spread awareness about online privacy and [educate] citizens on how to manage their personal information and keep it secure” and to “ [encourage] businesses to respect data and be more transparent about how they collect and use customer data.”
For Data Privacy Week, The National Cyber Security Alliance is offering a bunch of resources and programs to help individuals educate themselves on security and hel[ businesses learn what’s important and how to prioritize privacy for their customers.
Virtual events will take place throughout the week, and include such offerings as Respecting Privacy: Managing Data Collection in your Business, #DataPrivacyChat Twitter Chat, and Introduction to Privacy, among others. Check out the site for details and registration.
Among the resources available, NCSA offers:
- Guides to how to manage privacy settings (including direct links to the privacy pages of popular sites),
- Infographics and tipsheets,
- Articles on how to secure various devices accounts,
- Links to quizzes to test a user’s phishing and privacy knowledge,
- The Stay Safe Online Blog
How can libraries participate?
The easiest way for public libraries to get involved is to check out the Get Involved page on the NCSA website. The page offers a list of ways organizations, businesses, and individuals can observe Data Privacy Week. They advocate following the NCSA on social media, posting about Data Privacy Week to raise awareness, and posting tips online.
Organizations and individuals can become Data Privacy Week Champions, which simply means signing up to have their organization or name listed on the website. Champions receive a free Data Privacy toolkit that will let them spread the word about Data Privacy.
Participation can be as easy as adding a logo and link to the Data Privacy Week site to the library’s website and posting to social media throughout the week.
Why should libraries participate?
Paying attention to data privacy is an important part of our service to our users. We have a responsibility to protect the data our users share with us, but it is also within our power to help users navigate the world of data privacy on their own. The simple act of posting information about why privacy is important lets our users know that we are serious, and that we seriously want to help them protect themselves. It doesn’t take much effort, but might make a world of difference to the people we serve.
Stacy Tomaszewski is the Electronic Resources Librarian at The Alameda County Library (CA).