In the current digital world, it’s now more important than ever to maintain privacy for your customers and clients. You are legally required to treat your customer’s personal information data respectfully and reasonably. This includes any information provided to you by your customers, from your website, email or any other platform. The best way to ensure you are covered is by having the following information and systems in place.
Privacy Policy
Any business website is legally required to have a Privacy Policy in place that is clearly available to customers. Regardless of the type of business, it is a requirement to have a Privacy Policy available. Ensure that it is easy to find, clear and simple to read and understand.
In a privacy policy you should include:
- All of your businesses practices
- The type of personal information that you collect and store
- The purposes for which you collect, hold, use and disclose personal information
- How you collect and securely store personal information
- A promise not to ‘spam’, sell or rent a visitor’s email address
- How an individual may access and correct any information you hold on them, including unsubscribing from any email list
- How an individual may complain about a breach of the Australian Privacy Principles and how you’ll deal with the complaint
- Whether you disclose personal information to other people or organisations, and if they’re overseas, which country they are in
- Your contact details
- Mention a clause regarding ‘cookies’
It is not enough for you to post a compliant Privacy notice on your website – you and your business need to uphold the Australian Privacy Principles. For example:
- Take precautions against being hacked
- Purge out-of-date customer database records
- Act on email list unsubscribe requests promptly
- Keep your Privacy Policy notice up-to-date, etc.
Information taken from – https://legal123.com.au/how-to-guide/privacy-policy-australia/
Confidentiality Policy
Just like having a Privacy Policy, it’s also important to have a Confidentiality Policy in place that clearly states that any information provided to your business is kept confidential, including any information sent via email and through your website.
Systems set up to keep documents and files separate
Ensure that you have the right systems in place to keep any client’s documents and contact information private. Having all of your files in the one system is highly recommended, whilst making sure they are clearly labeled and separated. Destroy or archive personal information when a client has ceased. There are many systems available to securely store files such as OneDrive, DropBox, and various website providers.
Password vaults
If you are working for a client where you need their passwords, it’s particularly important to keep this information safe. One of my personal favourite applications for this is LastPass. It’s an application where you can safely and securely store and share passwords.
Phone systems (VOIP)
VOIP is a system that enables telephony services to operate over computer networks. It converts your voice into a digital signal, allowing you to make a call directly from a computer. It can be used to identify which calls are coming in for which company, which is especially useful if you are taking calls for multiple clients.
Are you wanting to create and maintain privacy within your business? Or are you a small business owner with no time to take care of the paperwork piling up? Then you’ve come to the right place! We have a range of options to suit your business needs, and if you don’t see something that fits, we can work with you to create a tailored plan.
If you’re ready to grow your business to the next level, and need help with your business planning and administration, but aren’t in the position to hire a full time staff member, a Virtual Assistant is the solution!
We take care of the mundane so you can take care of the creative.
If you would like to get in touch with me to help, you can contact me here https://aspireadminservices.com/contact/