Article Contributed by Elizabeth Lee
A data leak is potentially terrifying. Your ability to respond to and resolve the situation can quickly become your ability to save your business. It’s a trying time, but it doesn’t need to be the end of the world. If you approach the situation calmly and with a plan, you can overcome anything.
- Step Back for a Second
A panic response isn’t going to help anyone in a tense situation. Though it may be counterintuitive, you need to step away and clear your head before you start talking. Impulses in a tough time rarely provide the right response. Take a minute to breathe when you learn of your data breach.
- Notify Your Customers Immediately
The moment you realize confidential data got out, you need to put all of your customers on notice. It’s a better idea to inform everyone than it is to wait and find out who was affected. Damage can continue to be done in the meantime. Don’t take any risks, and make a direct announcement by email or phone to everyone whose data you have stored.
- Provide Frequent Updates
Every time a significant development occurs, let your customers know. This includes details about what actually happened and where you are in the process of creating a satisfactory resolution. The worst thing you can do is keep your customers in the dark when you’re planning a fix – they’re worried, and silence on your end doesn’t look good. They need to be able to trust you with this situation.
- Offer What You Can Offer
If you have the means to offer credit protection or resolution services for your affected customers, make it available as soon as possible. It may take a little while to allocate resources and implement something that will satisfy everyone, but doing what you can to make things right will make long term customers less inclined to disrupt their relationships with you.
- Catch the Culprit
If hackers intercepted your data, you need to pursue them for their crime. If it was a poorly managed policy or a mistake made by an employee, it’s time to make some changes in your office. Your customers are going to want some sort of justice for what happened to them, and you need to protect your business against anyone who has done it harm – even if it was internal.
- Make Sure You’re Safeguarded
Reinforce all of your security measures. Check how your backups are stored and change your policies on how long you retain data – you might be storing data you no longer need, and this puts more people at risk. Make sure you’re always connected through a secure network, especially if you aren’t sure whether or not the breach is still active.
- Prevent it From Happening Again
There’s always something to be learned, even in the darkest of times. Even if the breach wasn’t your fault, you need to learn what you can do to avoid putting your data in the crosshairs. You might need to change the way you handle data entirely, and implement new security policies that you didn’t realize were necessary before. The most important thing you can do is minimize future risk – in the end, you won’t walk away feeling like you’ve taken a beating and didn’t get back up.
Let your data breach bring your company and customers closer together. Customer service is more important during a breach than it ever has been before. Make sure to reward your support staff and IT professionals for all the hard work they’ll be doing on your behalf.
Author’s Bio
Elizabeth Lee is a business blogger, deeply interested in logistics, customer relations and marketing. Currently, she is supporting PACK & SEND, experts in the field of logistics. Feel free to visit PACK & SEND on Aubiz.