Data Retention Best Practices

 

A good data retention policy needs to clearly define its purpose, address concerns and clarify its scope. The tricky part is that it varies for different businesses based on their specific needs. Following these best practices will help you create a data retention policy that is uniquely yours.Data is one of the most valuable resources in the world today — even more valuable than oil, according to some sources. As a result, data has become a precious commodity to organizations across all industries, and a target for hackers. Given the sheer volume of data that businesses collect — as much as 7.5 septillion gigabytes per day — and the number of laws and regulations that exist to protect that data, it’s imperative that your organization develop and enforce robust data retention policies. For more at Data Retention Policy

 

 

In this blog post, we’ll take a closer look at what data retention is, why it matters, how to create a data retention policy and more.Data retention, or record retention, is exactly what it sounds like — the practice of storing and managing data and records for a designated period of time. There are any number of reasons why a business might need to retain data: to maintain accurate financial records, to abide by local, state and federal laws, to comply with industry regulations, to ensure that information is easily accessible for eDiscovery and litigation purposes and so on. To fulfill these and other business requirements, it’s imperative that every organization develop and implement data retention policies.A data retention policy, or a record retention policy, is a business’ established protocol for maintaining information. Typically, a data retention policy will define: For more at Data Retention Policy

What data needs to be retained

The format in which it should be kept

How long it should be stored for

Whether it should eventually be archived or deleted

Who has the authority to dispose of it, and

What procedure to follow in the event of a policy violation

Though the primary purpose of a data retention policy is to ensure proper data management in accordance with relevant legal statutes and regulations, it’s also an excellent way to enhance efficiency within your organization.There are several best practices to help determine if your organization is retaining data properly. In this guide, you’ll learn about three key areas:

 

Classification: identifying and classifying the data your organization holds

Compliance: knowing which legal requirements apply to you

Deletion: knowing when to delete data once it is no longer required

You’ll also learn about different types of data, how to create handling guidelines, common data regulation frameworks, options for archiving data, and much more.

 

Below is an overview of best practices for data retention, which you can download and review with your organization and keep for your reference.For more at Data Retention Policy