Data Retention And Minimization, The Elephant In The Room

Following in the footsteps of Europe, U.S. states are codifying obligations to maintain personal data inventories and retention schedules, and to limit retention and use to only what is necessary to meet the purposes disclosed at the point and time of collection, for only so long as that limited purpose continues. A recent study by the publication Compliance Week suggests that info gov professionals have a false sense of confidence regarding their compliance with these obligations, and that when asked about actual policies and practices data retention and minimization programs were typically immature and too often non-existent. The study included a comprehensive survey completed by 173 info gov professionals across 30 industries. The findings, including recommendations for refining info gov programs to meet the requirements of new state privacy laws is available here and includes best practice tips from Alan Friel, Chair of SPB's Global Data Practice.