What would you do if an ex-employee took your customer list to a competitor? Or a dishonest employee ransacked personnel files for private information? Here’s advice on how to protect your company’s intellectual property and proprietary information.
Small businesses generally have in their possession vital business information ranging from their employees’ personal information to customer lists. A businesses’ sensitive and proprietary information, as well as intellectual property, should be properly protected. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says that a leak of business information can lead to fraud, ID theft, and lawsuits.
A good guide to protecting information is to follow these five key principles:
Take Stock: Know what personal info you have in your files and on your computer.
Scale Down: Keep only what you need for your business.
Lock It: Protect the information in your care.
Pitch It: Properly dispose of what you no longer need.
Plan Ahead: Create a plan to respond to security incidents.
To learn more you can take the FTC tutorial at www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/multimedia/interactive/infosecurity/index.html
