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Personally Identifiable Information (PII) refers to any data that can be used to identify a specific individual. This includes information such as names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and more. Essentially, PII encompasses any details that, alone or combined with other data, can pinpoint an individual’s identity.
Nowadays, vast amounts of personal data are collected, stored, and processed by various organizations, so proper management and protection of PII are vital to safeguarding privacy and preventing identity theft, fraud, and other malicious activities.
Personally Identifiable Information (PII) is any information that can be linked to a specific individual and allows for their identification. This data can be as straightforward as a person’s full name or as sensitive as their Social Security number. Examples of PII include:
The current reliance on information technology has led to an exponential increase in the sharing and collection of PII. Organizations gather PII to better understand their markets and enhance their products and services. For instance, companies collect customer data to deliver personalized experiences, like relevant search results in navigation apps or tailored product recommendations in online stores.
PII is classified into two categories: direct identifiers and indirect identifiers.
Direct identifiers are unique pieces of information that can directly and unmistakably identify an individual. Examples include:
A single direct identifier is usually sufficient to pinpoint someone’s identity without any additional information.
Indirect identifiers, on the other hand, are pieces of information that, by themselves, do not uniquely identify an individual. These include:
While each indirect identifier alone might not reveal someone’s identity, a combination of them can.
Personally identifiable information (PII) can be either sensitive or nonsensitive.
Sensitive PII includes information that, if disclosed, could cause significant harm to an individual. This type of PII includes legal identifiers and highly personal information such as a full name, Social Security Number (SSN), driver’s license number, mailing address, credit card information, passport details, financial information, and medical records. These pieces of information are critical to an individual’s identity and privacy, and their exposure could lead to identity theft, financial loss, and other serious consequences.
Companies that handle sensitive PII often use anonymization techniques to protect this data. These methods encrypt the information, ensuring it is received in a form that is not personally identifiable. For instance, healthcare providers often need to share patient data for research purposes. When sharing this information, they anonymize sensitive PII such as patient names, Social Security numbers, and medical record numbers. This allows researchers to access necessary health information without compromising patient privacy.
Non-sensitive PII refers to information that is easily accessible from public sources such as phone books, the internet, and corporate directories. This includes data like ZIP code, race, gender, date of birth, place of birth, and religion. These pieces of information, known as quasi-identifiers, can be released to the public without immediate risk of identifying an individual.
However, while non-sensitive PII is not inherently delicate, it is linkable: when combined with other personal linkable information, non-sensitive data can reveal an individual’s identity. Techniques like de-anonymization and re-identification are often successful when multiple sets of quasi-identifiers are pieced together, distinguishing one person from another. So, even nonsensitive information must be cautiously managed to prevent unintended identification.
Despite best efforts to protect personally identifiable information (PII), cybercriminals continually devise new methods to steal it. Let’s go over some of them:
It’s important to be aware of these common methods and take precautions to protect your PII.
Protecting your personally identifiable information (PII) is crucial, even though it’s impossible to eliminate all risks. You can significantly reduce the chances of your PII being stolen if you take the right steps. Here are some practical tips to help you keep your information safe:
These measures can make you a less attractive target for identity thieves and better protect your PII.
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