"Data-Safe"

Recently I have heard the term "data-safe" from a number of sources and companies with regard to residual data security.  It started me reminiscing about the first time I heard the term used.  Now; I am not claiming to be the first to use it or to have invented it in this context however it is a term I have promoted.

I first heard the term in about 1995 when the then Operations Manager at TAM used it in a meeting.  Derek Wood was ex-military.  He made a really important point.  The control of data was similar to the control of munitions in the Army and with the business equivalent of a huge explosion should it ever go wrong.  

The military use terms such as "make safe" and they confirm a device is safe habitually before it is passed from one person to another.  This chain of custody is also used in the control of data.  The metaphor is a strong one and this is perhaps why the term has spread and stuck.

The explosive consequences of a data loss or data breach are huge but well publicised not least of which on this blog. It could be considered an explosion.  A damaged brand, a compromised database, a million customers to notify all would be explosions in the world of most CTO's.

Would we carelessly discard an explosive device?   They have a habit of sitting undiscovered for years at a time waiting to be made-safe or possibly to explode, the only difference being luck. Perhaps we should treat all data with the same consideration of consequences that the army use for munitions. Or await a big bang.