Gain Their Trust
Following good computerG security practices will make you and your customers safer. While that is reason enough, a coherent security planG can also put your customers at ease, making them happier and improve your bottom line.
Customers want to know what sort of information you're collecting about them, what you're doing with it and how you intend to protect it. These information practices will help safeguard your customers' identities and help them feel better about doing business with you online.
Have and follow a privacyG policy. If you have a Web site, you should have a privacy policy that simply and accurately describes for customers what information you collect about them, how you use it, and whether and how you share it with other companies or entities.
Know what you have. You should take stock of all the personal information you have about your customers, how and where you're storing it, and what you're using it for.
Keep what you need, delete what you don't. It may sound obvious, but if you're storing information about your customers that you don't need, delete it. The less you collect and store, the less opportunity there is for something to go wrong.
Protect what they give you. If you're holding onto information about your customers, you need to earn their trust by locking it down and keeping it secure.
For a detailed tutorial on how to protect your customers' personal data, visit the Federal Trade Commission's guide for business.
