Data Privacy Day Overview ‧
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Held on January 28 each year since 2007, Data Privacy Day is an international effort to “create awareness about the importance of privacy and protecting personal information.” In the U.S., it’s even a national day designated by Congress. Don’t expect any time off work, though.
Find out what happens each year on Data Privacy Day.
Data Privacy Day started in Europe
In Europe, Data Protection Day aims to “raise awareness about the protection of personal data in Europe and beyond.”
Because of the growing importance of online privacy, other countries soon jumped on board. DPD is now a global event recognized in the USA, Canada, 27 European countries, and other nations, too.
Why is Data Privacy Day on January 28?
Data Privacy Day in the USA
“Data privacy and cybersecurity are deeply intertwined,” said NCSA Executive Director Michael Kaiser in 2011. “Everyone is safer and more secure when people protect their own information and take responsibility to protect the information that others have entrusted to them.
“Everyone is safer and more secure when people protect their own information...”
Get involved with Data Privacy Day
Become a champion: DPD runs a Champions program as a way for companies and individuals to officially show their support. DPD Champions are “dedicated to respecting privacy, safeguarding data and enabling trust.” Organizations can champion the cause by spreading word about privacy on their websites and educating their employees. Individuals can champion the cause by spreading awareness through social media and attending events and workshops.
Share knowledge: DPD encourages individuals to create a culture of privacy awareness at home, work, and in their communities. People can get involved by teaching co-workers about privacy, helping their families become aware of digital privacy issues, and volunteering at local schools and community centers.
Promote DPD online: Where better to promote online privacy than... online? Data Privacy Day provides memes, hashtags, and banners to help supporters get the message out.
Take part in events: DPD also spreads its message through online and offline events. Among DPD’s 2017 slate were a day-long kickoff event at the Twitter Headquarters, a talk at Stanford Law School called “Government Hacking: Assessing and Mitigating the Security Risk,” and a conference in Brussels called “The Age of Intelligent Machines.”
Privacy resources at your fingertips
Data Privacy Day: A growing movement
In 2018, 926 media stories mentioned DPD, an increase of 52% from 2017. The #PrivacyAware and #DataPrivacyDay hashtags were used more than 33,000 times in January 2018.
DPD is creating privacy-aware citizens
Don’t forget to celebrate on January 28!