The International Association of Privacy Professionals presented its 14th annual IAPP-HPE Innovation Awards in its small and large organization categories to Nymity and Vanguard Group, Inc., respectively, at its Privacy. Security. Risk. conference in San Jose, California, last week.

The HPE-IAPP Innovation Award aims to recognize companies in both the public and private sectors that go above and beyond in the privacy and security field, setting the pace for their peers and encouraging consumers and industry professionals alike to think bigger and bolder by “integrating privacy in a way that elevates its value as both a competitive differentiator and a centerpiece of customer and citizen trust.”

The award is given to companies from three different categories: large organization (more than 5,000 employees), small organization (less than 5,000 employees), and the “technological innovation” field. Organizations are nominated either by their leadership or their peers and a group of IAPP members judge the submissions, ultimately choosing a winner.

Global research group Nymity took home the prize in the small organization category for its Attestor accountability and compliance program. The tool “enables organizations to report on the status of the privacy program – generating quantitative metrics supported by evidence – using the Nymity Data Privacy Accountability Scorecard,” ultimately streamlining the reporting process for chief privacy officers, Nymity said in its award submission.

"We’ve been innovating compliance right from the beginning in 2002. So [being creative is] not a realization, it’s a mandate." -Terry McQuay, Nymity

“Nymity’s slogan is ‘innovating compliance,’” said Nymity President Terry McQuay, CIPM, CIPP/C, CIPP/E, CIPP/G, CIPP/US.  “We’ve been innovating compliance right from the beginning in 2002. So [being creative is] not a realization, it’s a mandate. It wasn’t anything new here, it’s just what we do. What’s new is the award, being recognized for what we do.”

Getting the award, however, publicly and objectively acknowledges the company’s commitment to excellence. “We were happy for the recognition,” McQuay said. It’s an additional level of validation for consumers. “When we get the award, I can’t wait to tell our customers,” he continued. “They’ll know they made a good decision. They know it, but now they’ll have a third-party telling them. They can talk to their general counsel telling them, 'We did the right thing. We picked a winner.'”

In the large organization category, investment management company Vanguard Group, Inc. won for its internal Enterprise Data Identification and Tracking system, “a technology enabled control that embeds data governance and privacy principals into IT’s development process, creating an enterprise-level privacy-by-design program,” Vanguard said in its submission. This development ultimately strengthens internal security and better protects the data of “millions of Vanguard clients and website users, as well as thousands of employees,” they added.

"Our former chairman talks a lot about, ‘We don’t want to be a nice house in a bad neighborhood − we want to be a nice house in a nice neighborhood.'" -Joel Lutz, Vanguard

Vanguard sees innovation as a way to elevate the entire privacy field. “Our former chairman talks a lot about, ‘We don’t want to be a nice house in a bad neighborhood − we want to be a nice house in a nice neighborhood,'” said Vanguard Group Data Governance and Privacy Leader Joel Lutz, CIPP/US. “The more consumers are comfortable with online privacy and security in general, the better it is for all online companies, including us.”

Lutz hoped that winning the award would facilitate greater discussion about Vanguard’s tools to increase privacy, ways the system could improve, and how the field itself could tinker with best practices for optimum protection. This is “really the first time we’ve spoken about [Enterprise Data Identification and Tracking system] in any way, and we hope to begin that journey,” he said. “IAPP seems the perfect forum to begin that kind of dialogue.” In the meantime, “I think for the team who has worked on [EDIT] and our IT group, and across all of our businesses that actually operate the system, I hope it gets them a sense of energy and confidence that we at Vanguard are investing in a way that’s developing [on the] cutting edge,” he added.

Nymity and Vanguard weren’t the only companies recognized. The technological innovation category had two winners this year: mobile privacy company Vysk, for its Quantum Secure 1 smartphone case, and health record security organization Protenus, for its “360 degree view” electronic health record system. 

For HPE, the award marks another year of excellence. “HPE has been proud to sponsor the IAPP Innovation Awards since their inception in 2003,” said HPE Privacy Assurance Manager Ray Farraro, CIPP/US. "Since that time, this award has singled out organizations that have distinguished themselves by pushing the envelope of responsible data protection and privacy practices and this year is no different. It is an honor and a privilege for HPE to recognize such a diverse group of organizations and we congratulate them on being true innovators in the field.”

IAPP President and CEO Trevor Hughes, CIPP, also congratulated the winners on their recognition. “The Innovation Award strives to spotlight those who set the standard for well-executed, thoughtful and effective privacy practices,” he said. “It is clear that our winners are fine examples of the best our field has to offer, and will continue to serve as pace-setters in the future.”

Top Photo: Terry McQuay, Joel Lutz, Vysk Communications CEO Victor Cocchia, and Protenus co-founders Robert Lord accept the HPE-IAPP Innovation Award on behalf of their respective organizations.