Data is your responsibility – even if you outsource!

In today’s digital age, data is a valuable asset for any business. It can be used to drive growth, improve customer engagement, and gain a competitive advantage.

However, as the amount of generated and stored data increases, so does the responsibility to protect and manage it effectively. This is true even if a business outsources its IT function. In this blog post, we will explore why taking responsibility for your own company’s data is important, regardless of whether you outsource your IT.

Protecting your data

First and foremost, it is important to understand that data security and privacy are a business’s responsibility, not the IT providers. While outsourcing IT may provide access to specialised expertise and resources, it does not absolve a business of its responsibility to protect its own data.

This entails ensuring that businesses protect the data from unauthorised access, breaches, and other security threats. Businesses must understand that their IT provider is responsible only for securing the IT infrastructure, not the stored data.

Staying compliant

Secondly, ensuring that the data is used for legitimate business purposes and complies with relevant laws and regulations is important. For instance, businesses must adhere to data privacy laws like GDPR, which impose strict requirements on the collection, storage, and use of personal data.

By taking ownership of your company’s data, you can guarantee compliance with these regulations and safeguard your customers’ personal information.

Who’s responsible for what? 

Thirdly, businesses that outsource IT must ensure that they have control over their data, even if it is stored on third-party servers. This is particularly important if the business needs to change IT providers, as data migration can be a complex and time-consuming process. By taking responsibility for your own company’s data, you can ensure that you have the necessary access rights, security controls, and backup systems in place to make data migration easier.

Understanding data

Finally, taking responsibility for your own company’s data enables you to gain a better understanding of the data and how it can drive business growth. By understanding your data, you can use it to gain insights, improve customer engagement, and gain a competitive advantage. This is particularly important as businesses are increasingly turning to data analytics to drive growth, and having control over your own data is essential for this.

Summary

Taking responsibility for your own company’s data is essential, even if you outsource your IT. It ensures that you protect, secure, and use the data appropriately, ensuring your business complies with relevant laws and regulations.

Additionally, controlling your own data enables a better understanding and utilization to drive business growth. Businesses should always ensure they have necessary access rights, security controls, and backup systems in place to protect their data and facilitate easy migration if needed.

This is where Riven can help.

We make sure we understand, plan and address any changes that may change your environment.

Why not give us a call on 01784 437 123, or email us at enqs@rivenassociates.co.uk.

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