In the past few years, legislation has been passed whereby there is an increased accountability for Call Centers. HIPAA translates into accountability for keeping patient records confidential. Sarbanes Oxley translates into accountability for financial records. Companies and their Agents are responsible for protecting personally identifiable information (PII).
Call Centers no longer breeze through internal or external audits without batting an eye and the number of fines and penalties issued by the Federal Trade Commission is on the rise. There is far more riding on the failure to pass an audit because in today’s world there are steep financial penalties, public scorn and liability at stake. Companies, their Call Centers, and their employees are now being held to a greater level of accountability.
Using RightProcess it’s easy to manage data privacy policies, standard operating procedures and program-specific details. RightProcess not only streamlines the processes associated with managing policies and procedures but it empowers Call Center management with the data they need to prove Agents have received the information, read it, understand it and are accountable.
Click here to see a complete list of the RightProcess features and functionality.
In 2008, the cost of a security breach was estimated at $205/per compromised record. For a small company with 100 customers, that’s an estimated cost of over $20,000. For a company with 1,000 customers, the estimated cost jumps significantly to over $200,000. For companies with thousands of customers, the associated costs of a security breach are simply astronomical.
There are also "reputation costs" based on the Company's exposure to the public. Over 44 states have implemented Notification laws, whereby Company's are obligated to contact consumers if a breach occurs which has a significant impact on negative exposure. Calculating a precise cost associated with negative press is next to impossible but nonetheless, substantial.
Finally, if a security breach does occur and the FTC gets involved, the Call Center's ability to demonstrate their efforts to responsibly train Agents on a meaningful set of security practices is critical. If they can prove they have been thorough and diligent in their privacy training, they are eligible for a "safe harbor" status recognized by the FTC and it can mean the difference between a FTC warning vs. a hefty fine and even a victory vs. a loss in a major lawsuit.
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