Why Secure Forms and Data Removal Go Hand-in-Hand in Protecting Your Online Identity

We live in the digital era, and we are witnesses that everything today happens online. Every transaction, interaction, and communication. Almost every human being is on social media or is shopping online, but it seems like we are taking identity protection for granted.

Open your web browser. Type a word into a search engine. Open any website. Each of these actions, believe it or not, reveals some information about you – even if no one has asked for your name or surname. Things get even worse when you log into an online service like Facebook or MySpace; by simply logging in, you agree to a fairly long list of information that these services can collect from you and use for advertising, internal statistics, or other purposes. Not only do cybercriminals target big enterprises, but they also pose a threat to small businesses, independent contractors, and regular Internet users. 

Unauthorised purchases, the creation of fraudulent accounts, and even the impersonation of people in more intricate schemes can all be accomplished using stolen data.

If you haven't taken certain steps to protect your privacy, companies like Google know who you are, where you’re connecting from, which websites you like to visit, who your social contacts are, what you buy online, and so on.

Here’s the bad news right away: unless you take some extreme measures, there is no way to fully protect your privacy online. However, you can at least reduce the amount of personal data you scatter while surfing the web, and this article will teach you how.

The Role of Secure Online Forms

Identity theft is a daily worry for millions of people worldwide. In the last few years, many people have experienced data breaches on their skin, putting their financial and personal data, as well as private information, at risk, which means that everyone is at risk, even regular internet users. Stolen data can be used to:

The first thing we need to do is to review the data that we supply online is stored and collected securely. That is just the first of many steps, and it sounds like a lot of work to do because even old and unused accounts could be vulnerable to hackers. However, protecting yourself online isn’t as difficult as it seems, and if done right, in the future, you’ll be happy you did it. Thankfully, a form that is well-designed always uses three key features to make sure your data stays protected:

1. Encryption: In the simplest words possible, encryption means converting readable data into code. It uses a set of mathematical values called a cryptographic key or algorithm. The more complex the key, the more secure the encryption. Protocols like SSL/TLS are utilized by secure forms to protect information when they are traveling between the device and server. 

2. HTTPS: Hypertext Transfer Protocol is probably the most widely used protocol in the world today. It is used for viewing web pages on the internet. All the information is sent in clear text, and it is exchanged between your computer and that web server, which means it is transferred all over the internet.  Because it is sent in clear text, it means that it is vulnerable to hackers and anybody who wants it. Always look for a padlock icon in the browser address bar before you submit any sensitive information.

3. Safe Input Validation: Another technique used by secure forms to guard against typical assaults like SQL injection and cross-site scripting (XSS). Organisations can prevent dangerous code from being unintentionally or purposely uploaded through forms by verifying and cleaning user input.

These are daily necessities that keep data from being stolen or compromised. Secure forms typically feature a user-friendly interface that clearly indicates what information is being collected, as well as how it will be used. All that means is building trust with transparency, which results in users being more comfortable in sharing their information.

Why Data Removal Matters 

First, most websites you visit can leave a cookie. A cookie is a small file on your computer that can track how often you visit a specific page or where you left off last time. You can turn that off in any web browser, but it doesn’t solve the problem because then half of the internet won't work properly for you. There's not much you can do about it, except avoid certain sites that are known for their aggressive use of cookies. The same goes for search engines, which can track your IP address (a sequence of up to 12 digits that uniquely identifies your computer on the internet), the time you browsed, the keywords you used, and so on.

The same goes for various other information that you may consider private: for example, when registering a web domain, you will be asked for your real information, including your name, surname, and address, which (unless you specifically request and pay for privacy) will be completely public and available to everyone on various whois services.

Removing data from the internet reduces the chances of you getting scams, spam, or fraud, and also:

1. Minimises Attack Surfaces: Saving less data means hackers have fewer chances to take advantage of it 

2. Prevents Data Misuse: If outdated information ends up in the wrong hands, it might be abused. This risk is eliminated by removing it proactively.

3. Regulation Compliance: Privacy laws, like the CCPA and GDPR, mandate that businesses reduce the amount of data they retain and give customers the option to have their information deleted.

4. Increases User Confidence: Gaining the trust of stakeholders and customers requires you to show that you take privacy seriously by deleting any superfluous data. 

One of the easiest ways to protect yourself is to consider data broker removal services, which help you remove your information from public data broker websites. Those websites collect and sell personal data without consent.

The Connection Between the Two

Secure data collection and responsible data disposal are two sides of the same coin. Collecting data safely through secure forms is only half the battle. If you shared your information with third parties, or it’s kept on an unsecured server, even the best secure forms can’t secure you fully. The two processes of deleting data and ensuring that it is collected securely in the first place must work together:

Best Practices for Protection

Maintaining online identity protection for both individuals and organisations requires a trifecta of technology, legislation, and attention. The following are best practices to adhere to:

Make sure that data is encrypted while it's in transit and when it's at rest. This stops illegal access at any point throughout the processing of data.

• End-to-end encryption: Whether you are using social media or surveys, make sure that they use E2E encryption, which makes them trustworthy.

• Data Retention Policies: Make sure you set clear policies on how long data will be kept and use automatic deletion. 

• Secure Deletion Processes: Use a secure method when deleting data, such as overwriting, physically destroying the storage device, or employing cryptographic deletion.

• Minimal Data Collection: Avoid typing in sensitive information if you don’t have to.

• Employee Training: If you owe a company, this is crucial, as one small mistake can lead to a huge problem like a data breach, so keep your employees trained.

• Privacy Tools: VPNs, private browsers, and data broker removal. 

• Regular Privacy Audits: Ensure that data protection measures are updated with current threats and compliance requirements.

• User Empowerment: Everybody likes easy-to-understand policies, and the same should go with privacy controls that users will manage with their preferences

Conclusion

Whether you own an organisation or you are just a regular internet user, a data protection strategy is a worthwhile investment. Collecting data securely through encrypted forms and removing data when it's no longer needed is all part of that strategy.

With technology evolving, so are the threats online, and taking control of your online presence is important than ever before.