Top 3 Data Privacy Frameworks Explained

Navigating data privacy regulations can indeed be daunting for most organizations. Government authorities are now imposing more fines for privacy law violations as tech giants increasingly misuse their monopoly status to their advantage. The recent congressional hearings where Meta, TikTok, X, Snap on privacy policy and data security are a sign of things to come. Companies will now be expected to take complete accountability of the harms that may occur due to poor data privacy on their platforms and the only way to prepare as a business is to address issues within data privacy frameworks proactively. 

If your business processes or collects personal data, one or more regulations may be mandatory and apply to you. But which is the right one and how do you ensure you adhere to it?

In this blog, we explore the types of data privacy frameworks and how to choose the right one for your business. 

What are data privacy frameworks?

Data privacy frameworks are a set of rules and guidelines that dictate how personal information should be collected, used, stored, and shared to ensure individuals’ privacy is protected. 

These often dictate how your company should follow privacy laws, protect individuals’ rights, and improve security. They make sure the data is handled properly and follow the best practices in the industry. 

Data protection frameworks also help businesses by helping them make informed decisions related to customer privacy, ensure compliance with industry standards, and avoid legal penalties due to non-compliance. 

Also read: Why is Data Privacy Important in 2024? 

List of data privacy frameworks – which is the right one for you?

Let us understand most of the industry-accepted and popular privacy data frameworks and use cases for different types of businesses. 

NIST Privacy Framework – to protect individual data processed by complex systems

The NIST Privacy Framework created by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is a tool that helps your business resolve privacy concerns via enterprise risk management. It guides them to develop and implement practices that help protect individual information flowing through complex systems.

Your organization can use the NIST Privacy Framework to:

• Build customer trust by making ethical choices while developing/designing products, optimize data usage, and protect individual privacy
• Ensure products meet regulations in a changing environment.
• Help businesses communicate their privacy practices with stakeholders and regulators 

The privacy framework has three parts: Core, Profile, and Implementation Tiers. 

• Core:  Entails privacy protection activities and ensures smooth communication from planning to execution. 
• Profile: Covers your organization’s privacy activities and goals. It is developed by reviewing outcomes and activities in Core to prioritize the critical ones. 
• Implementation Tiers: Helps you assess resource availability and adequacy to manage privacy risks based on their nature across the organization’s systems, products, and service type. 

When should you consider the NIST privacy framework?

NIST recognizes that cybersecurity frameworks often fail to address privacy risks sufficiently, even though the controls and objectives of cyber risks comprise some aspects of privacy-related risks. If your product or service requires you to process private information, conduct a risk assessment to identify the problems that can tamper with data integrity and confidentiality. This entails majorly the PII (personally identifiable information) that you collect. 

Quick Tip: An impact analysis will help you understand whether you require a comprehensive privacy risk framework to mitigate any potential harm to your customers. 

HIPAA – to protect patient privacy

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, a US-based regulation, aims to protect PII in healthcare services. It modernized and standardized the flow of health information in electronic systems to protect patient privacy and prevent data fraud or theft. 

Understanding the Privacy Rule – how it protects patient privacy 

The Privacy Rule of HIPAA aims to protect health information while ensuring an uninterrupted flow of information to facilitate healthcare efficiency and quality. 

The rule’s flexibility and comprehensiveness cover a wide range of edge cases and exceptions. It limits the use and disclosure of PHI unless the CE is required by the privacy rule or can produce the patient’s written authorization. 

Circumstances when you can use or disclose PHI without the owner’s authorization: 

1. If the information is disclosed to its owner 
2. For treatment, payment, and health care activities 
3. If the individual informally consents or the CE deems its use or disclosure to be the best solution based on their judgment
4. If the disclosure is in the public interest or fulfills a legal requirement
5. If the CE adopts reasonable safeguards to protect the PHI and abides by the minimum necessary rule

When should you consider HIPAA?

The act consists of five titles. If you are a covered entity (CE), Title Two (Preventing Health Care Fraud and Abuse; Administrative Simplification; Medical Liability Reform); concerns you. It establishes the policies and procedures to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of PHI by enforcing numerous penalties for its violation. As a covered entity, you are obligated to follow the privacy and security laws or face legal consequences. 

Trying to figure out if you are a Covered Entity? Download this toolkit to know more. 

Also Read: How Neurosynaptic embraced automation to complete HIPAA audit

Sprinto is a compliance automation tool that helps you map, manage, and monitor your HIPAA privacy and security requirements in a structured way, custom to your business. Implement the right controls, capture compliance evidence, and ensure training for employees from a single console. Get your effortless dashboard to manage HIPAA now. 

GDPR  – to protect data privacy and rights of EU residents 

The General Data Protection Regulation is the most stringent regulation developed by the European Union. An important component of the EU privacy law, it governs how data controllers should process personal data. 

How does GDPR protect individual privacy?

GDPR outlines 11 chapters around data controller obligations, individual rights, penalties for non-compliance, and more. Each chapter consists of articles or recitals, some of which directly address individual privacy, such as articles 6 and 25. 

Article 5 of GDPR relates to “Lawfulness of processing.” These purposes are: 

• If the data subject consents to processing their data
• To fulfill a contractual obligation or to comply with a task requested by the data subject 
• To comply with the legal obligations of a data controller
• To protect the vital interests of the data subject or another individual
• To conduct an activity that serves the public interest or the official authority 
• For a legitimate interest of the data controller or a third party

Article 25 of GDPR relates to “Privacy by design.” The term implies considering data privacy while designing or developing the technology. It requires the controller to implement appropriate technical and organizational safeguards to ensure data minimization, such as encryption, authentication, and pseudonymization. These measures can be certified to demonstrate compliance. 

Additionally, GDPR recommends conducting a privacy impact assessment (PIA) and documenting the results before collecting or processing the data. It is a compulsory obligation if the controller needs to process high-risk data, the loss of which can result in an adverse impact on the rights and freedom of the data owner. 

How Noosa.io became GDPR compliant in 14 sessions with Sprinto

When should you consider GDPR?

If your company processes personal data of EU citizens as one of the activities, even if it is not located in EU territory, GDPR is mandatory for you. Additionally, if your company monitors the behavior of EU citizens, GDPR applies to your business. 

Data privacy framework management made easy

You already know the importance of privacy compliance frameworks if your organization processes sensitive personal data. But implementing it is easier said than done, especially if you are thinking of managing the princesses manually. 

Also Read: Best Privacy Management Software in 2024

Thankfully, Sprinto helps you add efficiency and automation to compliance management without breaking the bank or bleeding your team’s bandwidth. With this simple, powerful, and smart approach, you can: 

• Launch, manage, and continuously monitor the framework we mentioned above, along with any custom ones of your choice. 
• Get your privacy program up and running using a library of pre-built customizable policy templates.
• Navigate audits with accuracy and confidence using an auditor-friendly dashboard to collect evidence automatically 
• Organize, automate, and operate end-to-end privacy framework processes by connecting your system to reach your goals in weeks instead of months.

Ready to expedite your compliance process? Speak to our experts today.

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FAQs

What are the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework principles?

The EU-U.S. DPF principles are a set of seven commonly recognized principles and privacy policies that govern the processing of personal data from the EU. It applies to the EU-U.S. DPF and the UK Extension to the EU-U.S. DPF, while the Swiss-U.S. Data Privacy Framework (Swiss-U.S. DPF) Principles apply to the Swiss-U.S. DPF.

What are the types of data privacy?

Some common types of data privacy are public-related, internal only, business confidential, and highly restricted. 

What level of protection do data privacy laws provide?

The level of protection offered by data protection frameworks vary depending on the privacy principles that establish the type of security controls, transfer mechanisms, and complexity of business operations. 

Why are privacy frameworks helpful for business?

Privacy frameworks help you comply with regulatory standards and compliance obligations, ensure efficient security management, ensure diligence of third-party service providers, and demonstrate professional standards of security to prospective customers.