Data retention limits are the defined time periods, personal data should be retained by the organizations. These limits are critical for data privacy and security, as well as for compliance with data protection regulations.
Importance of Data Retention Limits
Protection of Privacy: Limiting data retention period reduces the risk of unauthorized access, data breaches, and identity theft.
Considering legal or regulatory requirements: A lot of data protection regulations (like GDPR, CCPA, etc.) require organizations to have transparent data retention policies.
Decreasing the cost: Removing all of the irrelevant data can save us from the costs of storing it as well as simplify our data management.
Improved Security: With less data to safeguard, there are less potential cyberattack targets.
What Should Data Retention Limits take into Account
Legal Obligations: Compliance with laws pertaining to data preservation and sector-specific regulations.
Retention Period Needed: Identify based on business needs or business operational requirements.
Risk Assessment: Determine the risks related to data retention and mitigate them as appropriate.
Technology challenges: Owning and managing data for an extended period of time may be technically difficult.
Privacy Impact Assessments: Implement privacy impact assessments to assess how data retention activities affect privacy.
Data Retention Guidelines
Explicit Data Retention Policies: Create explicit data retention policies that specify how long various categories of data should be retained.
Periodic Review: Review and revise data retention policies periodically to keep them effective and enforceable.
Automated Erasure: Utilize systems to automatically delete data once the expiry date has reached
Data Wiping or Physical Destruction: Implement secure methods for permanently erasing or physically destroying data.
Data Minimization → Only collect and keep the minimal personal data.
Privacy by Design: Integrate data retention processes into the design and development of systems and processes.
