Home Credit Philippines (HCPH), the leading global consumer finance company in the country, wins the Privacy Management Program Award for Non-bank Financial Sector during the National Privacy Commission’s Privacy Awareness Week (PAW) Awards 2022.
Leading this project to continue building customer and other stakeholder trust and protection is Atty. Reiyl Siang, HCPH’s Data Protection Officer, also a finalist for the Data Protection Officer of the Year. During the first day of NPC’s PAW celebration, he was also a discussant speaking on the importance of transparency in establishing trust in online lending.
HCPH is recognized for consistently updating and improving its data protection practices ensuring that the personal data of data subjects (employees, customers, and vendors) are protected and safeguarded in accordance with the Data Privacy Act.
Proactive and not Reactive Security
To ensure that its standards of data protection are maintained, HCPH developed a Privacy Manual for all external partners that process HCPH data, particularly Personal Data. Part of the policy found in the manual is to only partner with organizations, which process personal data with security controls at least at par with company policies or policies of the group of companies to which HCPH belongs. This management style helps HCPH incorporate data protection controls with partners to prevent possible data breaches and improve partners’ data security.
HCPH privacy management is made to be preventive and not remedial to data protection, anticipating future security issues and risks for the company. With its manual set in place, HCPH regularly conducts compliance testing on data privacy issues faced by business units to validate risk ratings and security controls, making HCPH safe and secure through its proactive security measures which complement its security management processes in response to possible incidents.
Security from Inside Out
HCPH continuously enhances its internal Privacy Management Governance Framework which balances the individual’s right to data privacy while enabling business strategy. This Framework serves as HCPH’s model or map in seeing the interrelated relationships, factors, and other influences upon the business, especially concerning data privacy. It steers HCPH in the right direction in terms of management and regulatory compliance to achieve its business objectives of having efficient processes, having accountability, and ensuring customer trust.
“Data privacy is a priority here at Home Credit. We ensure that our customers, partners, and internal stakeholders can depend on us to uphold their privacy rights and process their personal data lawfully. Developing a company-initiated security framework that meets or even exceeds our obligations under the Data Privacy Act of 2012 is of utmost importance to us,” shares Atty. Reiyl Siang, HCPH Data Protection Officer.
Atty. Siang adds, “As we continue to provide financial inclusion to unbanked and underserved Filipinos across all walks of life, we also continue to build trust among all stakeholders to continue doing business with us.”