Data Privacy Day is January 28, and kicks off Data Privacy Month—February.

Now is an excellent time to recognize Data Privacy Month in ways that are both practical and impactful. Some ways you can do this are to:

• Take steps to protect yourself from identity theft: The Privacy Office offers tips on how to avoid becoming a victim of identity theft. Visit the Privacy website for more details at http://www.upenn.edu/oacp/privacy/yourdata/identity-theft.html

• Practice safe computing: Information Systems & Computing offers “Top 10 Tips for Faculty” and “Top 10 Tips for Staff,” as well as “Top 10 Tips for Smartphones and Tablets.” These guides are designed to get you quickly through many critical topics, such as firewalls, passwords, wireless, phishing and more. Check out these “Top 10” lists and share them as appropriate: http://www.upenn.edu/computing/security/checklists/Top10/

• Don’t keep unnecessary data: Too often we read about data breaches that were avoidable because the data stolen was being kept by an institution unnecessarily. So, securely delete confidential information that is no longer needed for teaching, research, service, operations or any other Penn-related function. To destroy sensitive physical files, use a shredder to ensure the information cannot be accessed by others. Use software such as Identity Finder to detect and properly dispose of electronic files containing sensitive information. Before securely deleting information, make sure that this is permissible according to Penn Guidance.  For more information about eliminating unnecessary data, see: http://www.upenn.edu/oacp/privacy/penndata/

• Host a Records Clean Up Day: Data Privacy Month is a great time of year to think about planning a Records Clean Up Day. Ask your department, school, or center leadership to designate one day out of the year for cleaning and organizing your offices and work areas. Here are some tools to help you plan:

http://www.upenn.edu/oacp/privacy/penndata/host-a-records-cleanup-day.html