
14 Aug Privacy is the Proxy for Trust: Data Governance, Privacy, and Security
Damian (Dondi) Mapa, the current Regional Chief Privacy Officer of Citigroup APAC, discussed the importance of data governance in the webinar series, Digital Transformation Thursdays, held last 13 August 2020.
Reiterating the infamous adage “data is the new oil of the digital economy,” Mapa explained that control of one’s personal data can very well lead to control of a human being. The person who holds data about a person has the power to influence that person’s behavior, such as what to buy, read, vote or think.
‘Accountable’ is the keyword in the long list of duties of a Data Privacy Officer (DPO) according to Mapa. Accountability means that at minimum, the DPO is there to train members of the organization and to show them the right way. Mapa dispelled the notion that the DPO is the person who goes to jail. He explained, “the only time really that the DPO should go to jail is if they themselves commit a criminal act, or if there’s gross negligence.”
Having nice manuals is only half of operational compliance, the other half being the behavior of the employees. Mapa emphasized the need for a culture change in the company, one that is continuously built and practiced. According to Mapa, “it requires building a culture of privacy through a variety of plans and programs.” Mapa reiterated the need for companies to develop a culture of compliance because “it’s almost difficult to expect your data privacy project to be successful if you don’t have a culture of compliance.”
Mapa introduced the four (4) key players in building compliant processes, namely the Process Owner, the Compliance Officer for Privacy, the Subject Matter Experts, and the Data Privacy Officers. He then elaborated on the Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA), a document that should contain discussion points that key players need to talk about.
“Privacy is the proxy for trust.” Mapa reminded organizations that showing customers that they are serious about privacy is how they earn the customers’ trust and business.
The recording of this session can be viewed on Facebook through the Disini Law page. To know more about the next Digital Transformation Thursdays webinars, visit https://dtt.ph/.