Seminar 01F - Data Minimization: Don't Keep It All Forever!

Data stored in enterprise-level business applications are only the tip of the iceberg regarding the staggering amounts of information collected and retained by educational institutions. While the security posture of central IT systems has improved over the past decade, without careful attention to all institutional data, in all locations and forms, institutions will continue dealing with major data risks (exposure, e-discovery expense, escalating storage costs, damage to institutional reputation, and legal non-compliance). To reduce these risks, the University of Virginia adopted a campus-wide, holistic approach, including the integration of its records management and information security programs. Some level of risk does and will always remain; however, the institution's efforts (featured in a 2009 ECAR case study on data stewardship) are having a positive effect on several fronts. This seminar will review the challenges posed by decades of unfettered data collection/retention and explore the strategies of UVa and other institutions for making essential, systemic changes to data management.