Did you know that today is Data Privacy Day?  It takes place annually on January 28th, and the inspiration for it happened a lot longer ago than you might think – all the way back in 1981!  Back then, they were very serious about protecting those 5 1/4 inch floppies!  😉

Seriously though, Data Privacy Day began in the United States and Canada in January 2008 as an extension of the Data Protection Day celebration in Europe. Data Protection Day commemorates the Jan. 28, 1981, signing of Convention 108, the first legally binding international treaty dealing with privacy and data protection.  Just over six years ago, on January 27, 2014, Congress adopted S. Res. 337, a non-binding resolution expressing support for the designation of January 28th as “National Data Privacy Day.”

The National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) officially leads the Data Privacy Day campaign and is advised by a distinguished advisory committee of privacy professionals to help the campaign align with the most current privacy issues in a thoughtful and meaningful way.

Given that it is National Data Privacy Day, you would think that the first rule of Data Privacy Day is that you don’t talk about Data Privacy Day.  And the second rule is… well, you know.  Actually, though, the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) wants you to “Show Us How You Celebrate Privacy for a Chance to Win Big”.  You can “Enter for your chance to win a FREE YEAR of IAPP Membership!” and, to do so, you need to:

1. Take a picture to show how you are celebrating Data Privacy Day.
2. Share your picture on social media using the hashtag #IAPPcelebratesDPD.
3. For bonus points, tag the IAPP on whatever platform you are sharing your picture on.

Because nothing celebrates data privacy quite like sharing your picture all over social media!  😉

Seriously, though (again), having your personal info stolen is serious business.  How serious?  So serious that, according to a Gallup survey (reported by Atlas VPN here), 55% of Americans are more worried about getting hacked than being murdered.  Maybe because you have to live through getting hacked?!?

So, be careful out there today!  Don’t get hacked – it can be (worse than) murder.  I’m serious (I think). 😉

So, what do you think?  Did you know today is Data Privacy Day?  Have you ever been hacked?  My condolences.  Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the authors and speakers themselves, and do not necessarily represent the views held by my employer, my partners or my clients. eDiscovery Today is made available solely for educational purposes to provide general information about general eDiscovery principles and not to provide specific legal advice applicable to any particular circumstance. eDiscovery Today should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.