How should you protect customer data in a service environment?

• A. Minimize data collection, secure storage, use encryption, and log access; only accessible by authorized staff.
• B. Collect as much data as possible; share with partners.
• C. Keep data unencrypted and accessible to all staff.
• D. Post customer data publicly to prove transparency.

Answer: (D)

Protecting customer data means limiting what you collect, keeping it secure, and tightly controlling who can access it while maintaining accountability. The strongest approach is to minimize data collection to only what’s necessary, store it securely with encryption, protect data in transit, and log access so that only authorized staff can reach it. This combination reduces the amount of data at risk, protects it from unauthorized access, and provides traceability to detect and respond to any issues.

Why the other ideas don’t fit: collecting excessive data and sharing it with partners expands the attack surface and raises privacy concerns; keeping data unencrypted and accessible to all staff eliminates essential confidentiality and privileges; posting customer data publicly is a violation of privacy and trust, and typically illegal.