What Are the Risks Associated with the Insecure Handling of Email Lists?
As a business, failure to maintain the privacy and security of subscribers on your email lists presents both professional and legal risks. Unknowingly or accidentally sharing customer data due to insufficient security measures can result in lost consumer confidence as well as financial penalties.
Why is the insecure handling of email lists important for consumer confidence?
When a customer creates an account, registers for a mailing list, or purchases with your company, they're trusting you with their confidential information. There's an implicit understanding that it's your business's responsibility to secure and protect its data and to delete it when it's no longer needed.
Consumers are intelligent and are aware when their information is shared without their consent or compromised. If your company is responsible for a sudden influx of spam, phishing scams, or even online fraud, your reputation will take a hit. Additionally, affected customers can take legal action if the compromised data results in personal or financial losses.
Aside from legal consequences, consumers only want to shop with secure businesses. A single mishandling of your email lists can cause a customer to lose confidence in your business for life. It takes a huge investment to build trust and just one mistake to lose it.
What are the laws regarding the insecure handling of email lists?
There are numerous laws throughout the world regarding data privacy, and those rules can differ based on the person's location. Some of these regulations include the following:
- California Consumer Protection Act (CCPA)
- EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
- CAN-SPAM
- Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
These laws describe the rights of persons and the rules a company must follow when collecting, using, or sharing personal information. Email address and email list data are included in these data protection rules.
The rights and rules guaranteed by each bill differ in various ways, but the general highlights are as follows:
- You need express permission to email an address
- You must provide users with a way to opt out from your emails
- Users must know when and how their data is used
- Users can request to have their data deleted at any time
- In the case of something like HIPAA, the company may only share a person's data with other HIPAA compliant companies
The insecure handling of email lists can result in compromising your customers' data. Violating your responsibility to protect your customers' personal information can result in heavy fines depending on the size of the offense and the number of affected customers.
Insecure handling of email lists presents risks that your company can't afford to take. When choosing an email verification company, be sure to investigate its security and privacy measures to ensure that the necessary processes are in place to protect your email lists.
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