Compuware, Privacy Associates White Paper Highlights Data Privacy Risks During Testing
DETROIT -- Compuware Corp. (Nasdaq:CPWR) Tuesday published a new white paper by Privacy Associates International LLC titled: "Putting Your Privacy People Back to Sleep With De-Identification." This paper, sponsored by Compuware, demonstrates the need for greater data security and protection for personal customer and employee data often used in application development and testing processes.
The white paper outlines the real potential for serious test data privacy issues including legal and non-compliance risks when companies use live production data as a basis for testing, modifying or fixing business applications and systems. For example, the paper cites survey research indicating more than 83 percent of financial services companies use real customer or employee information in development and testing, and a majority of these companies admit they do not take appropriate steps to protect this data.
"From the perspectives of budget and timeline, it may seem best to use real production data when testing an application, but doing so presents significant risks to an organization," said Robert L. Rothman, a Principal at Privacy Associates International. "De-identification of personal information can help chief privacy officers and organizations solve privacy problems while giving IT departments the latitude they need to meet testing objectives."
Privacy Associates International helps organizations address and manage data privacy needs. The white paper outlines:
* The pervasiveness of the use of live data in application testing and development work;
* Privacy concerns created by live data use from the standpoint of the Chief Privacy Officer;
* Reasons live data are used from the standpoint of the Chief Information Officer; and
* How de-identification can be used to address the needs of both the CPO and CIO.
"The findings outlined in this white paper should shock Chief Privacy Officers,|" said Stuart Feravich, worldwide solution leader for test data management at Compuware. "Current processing maps do not address customer data being sent unguarded around the world for testing. That's a glaring omission, especially when industry studies show that 70 percent of organizations send real production data to third-party organizations for development and testing. The Compuware Test Data Privacy solution is an extremely effective de-identification solution that addresses the needs of both the IT and privacy teams to avoid thorny non-compliance issues."
Compuware will highlight several notable advancements in test data management -- all available through the company's Test Data Management Solution -- in a Webcast Thursday, Nov. 10 at 11 a.m. Eastern time. To register for the "Protect Sensitive Data in Test, Protect Your Business" Web event, visit http://bit.ly/qBXgT2.
