Privacy concerns are limiting data usage abilities
Access to data is significantly limited by data privacy and protection regulations, according to a survey conducted by Bloor Research.
The report reveals that 60% of the data leaders surveyed are unable to use more than 40% of their data due to privacy concerns.
While the data that is available to those surveyed is readily accessible (84% can receive data in less than a week), this represents only a fraction of the data they need to access to drive innovation. In reaction, more than 70% of respondents currently have or plan to invest in a data privacy solution within the next year.
“Businesses are facing a tremendous challenge: they need timely access to data to gain accurate insights and drive competitive data initiatives. But they also need to ensure their data remains safe and compliant,” said Steve Totman, Chief Strategy Officer at Privitar.
“Balancing an organization’s need for analytical utility with the need to protect personal customer information and comply with rapidly evolving regulatory requirements is no small feat – but it is one that if not addressed will curtail an organization’s ability to reach the full potential of their data and analytics initiatives,” Totman continued.
Data privacy and compliance challenges remain pervasive
Data leaders are clear about their goals for using and analyzing data. Their top three goals for leveraging data include gaining a competitive advantage (56%), reducing costs (49%), and improving efficiency (46%).
Additionally, those surveyed want to use their data to improve business decision-making (45%) and to develop new products and services, and revenue streams (40%). 64.6% of respondents say increasing the return on investment (ROI) from data and analytics investments is critical, with 40% stating that investments to date have not achieved the desired results.
Data privacy and compliance challenges are abundant, with the majority of organizations leaving substantial amounts of data untapped. 62.6% of survey respondents stated that privacy concerns limit their ability to use data effectively.
When asked to delve deeper into their specific data protection and privacy challenges, 67% of respondents said access to useful data was restricted because of governance mandates; 61.2% said data protection reduced the value of their data; and 56.6% stated that complex, ad hoc, or manual data access processes created challenges.
Approximately 73.7% of organizations find it a challenge to keep up with the pace of regulatory change, and nearly 89% are looking to simplify processes for achieving regulatory compliance. More than half (57.6%) state that they are unable to manage the risks that they face.
Organizations taking action
Organizations are taking the challenges they face seriously, with a majority planning to invest in data privacy tools. More than 35% of organizations surveyed are currently investing in data privacy tools, which can help minimize the risk associated with sensitive data.
Another 35% of respondents plan to invest in data privacy tools within the next year. The top reasons for making data privacy investments are to mitigate risks and data loss (59%) and to comply with standards and regulations (57%).
In addition to embracing data privacy tools to improve their analytics efforts, the data leaders surveyed also cite a distinct desire to expand the range of data sources available for approved use (64%), have faster access to approved and protected data (59%), enable more users to access approved data (59%), and increase the ability to share data with partners (57%).
“It’s encouraging to see so many organizations taking action to keep their data safe by embracing data privacy as part of a data security platform,” added Totman.
“For those that want to maximize their efforts, data security platforms like Privitar can help simplify data protection by providing access controls and data privacy, ensuring efficient regulatory compliance, and democratizing access to safe, high-utility data. Expanding access to safe data can have a dramatic impact on an organization’s ability to effectively leverage that data for innovation,” Totman concluded.