As privacy professionals gather in Brussels at the IAPP Europe Data Protection Congress 2018 to regroup, strategize and collaborate with the top minds in European data protection, the IAPP has awarded Trūata with the HPE-IAPP Privacy Innovation Award for recognizing the need and importance of data anonymization.

The HPE-IAPP Privacy Innovation Awards recognize unique programs and services in global privacy and data protection in the private and public sectors and serve to distinguish organizations that integrate privacy in such a way that elevates its value as both a competitive differentiator and a centerpiece of customer and citizen trust.

Founded by Mastercard and IBM as an independent trust, Trūata was specifically designed to help companies conduct analytics while safeguarding privacy and ensuring compliance with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation.

Trūata Chief Privacy Officer Aoife Sexton, CIPP/E, said, “We were delighted. Receiving this award is a welcome early endorsement of what we are doing at Trūata. It’s particularly significant that this is an industry award, assessed by peers.”

Launched in March 2018, Trūata hit the ground running with a privacy by design approach. Offering what Sexton referred to as “a new approach to data anonymization and analytics,” Trūata offers a service to lawfully conduct analytic services on anonymized data. Using various analytical tools and algorithms, Trūata provides aggregated reports and model code back to its customers, aiming to give them insights to inform data-driven decisions. Speaking of the model, Sexton said the goal is to allow companies "to extract value from their datasets while protecting individuals privacy.”

Sexton said as the GDPR takes hold, companies will be increasingly faced with the challenge of how to preserve privacy while fostering innovation. Faced with the challenge of how to help companies meet the rigorous standards of the GDPR, Sexton said Trūata's sweet spot is independent data anonymization while retaining data utility.

She said as more and more companies try to make data-driven decisions, compliance has to be top of mind. "We are excited about working in this space. We are passionate about finding ways to innovate, but to do so in a way that respects people's privacy. Privacy is at the heart of what Trūata does. To really understand why Trūata is unique is to understand that we are not just about compliance programs or the technical solutions, we have been designed from the ground up as a privacy by design company."

In a breakout session at Data Protection Congress, Sexton will join Nehal Maniar, Trūata's CTO, and JoAnn Stonier, CIPM, Mastercard's EVP and chief data officer, for a panel discussion titled, "How Trūata Got Its Privacy Program to Perform," on Nov. 29 at 4:00 p.m