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One Step Ahead

Another tip in a series provided by the Offices of Information Systems & Computing and Audit, Compliance & Privacy

Identity Finder

You are probably aware that you should not retain sensitive data such as Social Security numbers or credit card information on your computer, especially Penn-owned sensitive data. But how do you know if you have this type of data on your computer? If you are required to retain sensitive information, how do you make sure it is secured?

Spirion Identity Finder software can be used to search your data for sensitive information: Social Security numbers, credit card numbers, bank account numbers and more. Custom searches can also be created. If sensitive data is found, it can be securely removed, redacted or encrypted as required.   

Spirion Identity Finder can be used on various operating systems such as MacOS, Microsoft Windows and Linux.  The software is available for licensing by departments at the University through the Office of Software Licensing.

Spirion Identity Finder is part of a broader institutional effort to make sure that sensitive data is not retained, and if it must be retained that it is protected from compromise and misuse. The University has published guidance on dealing with sensitive information.

For more information about Spirion Identity Finder and if it is appropriate for your department, please work with your local IT support staff to determine the best approach for you and the data you are responsible for overseeing.

Spirion Identity Finder licensing:

http://cms.business-services.upenn.edu/softwarelicenses/available-software/identity-finder.html

University data retention schedule and guidelines information:

http://www.archives.upenn.edu/urc/recrdret/guide1.html

For additional tips, see the One Step Ahead link on the Information Security website: www.upenn.edu/computing/security/

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