As human resources professionals continue to concentrate on assessing the needs of their organizations, one key area to focus on is preventing the theft of sensitive personal and business information. In 2017, we witnessed the most data breaches on record, with more than 15% more security incidents reported than in 2016. These data breaches exposed the personally identifiable information of hundreds of millions of people, and caused billions of dollars' worth of damage. Beyond monetary losses, the emotional fallout of being hacked can be equally devastating to individuals and families.

Employees whose information has been compromised from a fraudster exploiting their HR department will spend dozens to hundreds of hours out of the office to restore their identities. They'll feel a sense of betrayal from their company, hurting both morale and loyalty.

If the breach makes the news, the organization will have a public relations nightmare on its hands. Dealing with member, employee and media inquiries alone will become a full-time job. Furthermore, if you or your department is the source of the breach, your job and reputation will be in jeopardy.