Author of "Data Privacy: A Runbook for Engineers". Data governance, security and privacy executive. I also teach courses in security, privacy & career management. I care about animal welfare, especially elephants
Is Privacy doomed as a cost center? On Jan 1, 2019 at about 10am PST, I was driving home after working out at one of Google’s gyms at their Silicon Valley headquarters. It was a beautiful sunny day and I was planning on making pancakes for my wife upon getting home. Unfortunately, a driver ran a red light at high speed and slammed his car on to mine. I have harrowing memories of the next 10 seconds as my car was in the air, then landed on the ground with a thud, my seat-belt tightened and airbags popped. I was hoping to not die and remembering how much I cared about my family. Luckily, I survived with just a small scratch because all the safety features in my car worked perfectly. Interestingly, when these safety features were first proposed, many auto manufacturers were opposed. They argued that these safety features would: 1) Cost too much money 2) Slow down the car manufacturing process 3) Make the vehicle less stylish 4) Seem unattractive to the consumer Today, most car manufacturers use these safety features as part of their branding and advertising. Consumers expect these features as part of their vehicle upon purchase rather than an after-the-fact add-on. I am one of these consumers, since I would not be alive if not for these features. Which brings me back to privacy. Privacy features benefit the company and the consumer. They help: 1) Reduce risk of data leaks and misuse 2) Shrink your attack surface in the event of a breach 3) Lower the cost of data management 4) Improve data visibility and quality 5) Build transparency and trust 6) Enable ongoing compliance Privacy professionals, in engineering and legal teams, need to build and position features in terms of consumer value rather than just moral value. Companies have a lot of competing priorities and finite budgets. Thinking of privacy as a feature rather than a cost is smart business. Plus, it gives privacy a working model that complements rather than contradicts the company’s business model. It will help privacy professionals offer solutions rather than sermons. Thoughts?
Tom Redman
2w
Thanks for sharing this Michelle Finneran Dennedy. And I concur with @Waseem Uddin. Forward looking companies will see privacy as a feature. See https://hbr.org/2020/01/do-you-care-about-privacy-as-much-as-your-customers-do by myself and Robert Whitman, based on a recent Cisco study. Michelle Finneran Dennedy, interested in your thoughts here.
Waseem Uddin
2w
Just like car safety became an expected feature, I believe privacy is headed in the same direction. Focusing on building privacy features that deliver value for both the company and the user is a win-win.
Heidi Salow
2w
💯 agree!
Team Builder, Startup Cofounder and App Store Inventor
2winterestingly, fraud fighting and privacy are NOT a cost center because when people verify their own accounts? They multiply the value of their account data -- https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/all-fraud-fighters-safety-pros-privacy-advocates-truanon-8fc1e/