WASHINGTON, Jan. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA), a non-profit public-private partnership focused on helping all digital citizens stay safer and more secure online, and official coordinator of Data Privacy Day (DPD), is collaborating with many educational institutions, corporations, government and non-profit organizations across the world to make Data Privacy Day on January 28^th a success. Data Privacy Day is an international day of awareness to educate everyone to respect privacy and safeguard personal information.

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NCSA will host a Data Privacy Day forum on January 28^th that will explore ways in which we build trust by protecting data and personal information in cyberspace. The forum will take place at the George Washington University Law School in Washington, DC from 8-11:30 a.m. ET. Federal Trade Commissioner Maureen Ohlhausen will keynote the event. Speakers include:
 

• Erin Egan, chief privacy officer at Facebook
• David Hoffman, director of security policy and global privacy officer at Intel
• Brendon Lynch, chief privacy officer at Microsoft
• JoAnn Stonier, chief privacy officer at MasterCard
• Ari Schwartz, senior policy advisor, Office of the Secretary, U.S. Dept. of Commerce
• Justin Brookman, director, Project on Consumer Privacy, Center for Democracy & Technology

Panelists will participate with other thought leaders from government, academia and industry, who will explore Data stewardship and privacy innovation as well as the implications for personal information in an on-demand mobile environment.

Intel has signed on as a platinum sponsor for the event along with AT&T, Facebook, Google and Microsoft serving as gold sponsors. MasterCard and The George Washington School of Law are silver sponsors and Reputation.com is a small business sponsor.

Keeping the Internet safe, secure and trusted requires investment in protecting personal information and educating about online responsibilities. NCSA and Data Privacy Day partners aim to help Internet users understand and control their online experience and online reputation. We also hope that there will be widespread participation in Data Privacy Day 2013 conversations and events around protecting data online. A list of DPD events can be found at: http://www.staysafeonline.org/data-privacy-day/events/

"Anyone can get involved in Data Privacy Day and help raise awareness about the importance of data privacy. We all share in the responsibility to make the Internet a safer place and this requires us to ensure adequate measures are taken to protect data and use personal information responsibly," said Michael Kaiser, executive director of the National Cyber Security Alliance. "We're excited about the growing support for Data Privacy Day 2013. If everyone takes some time on or around January 28^th to educate customers, constituents, students and family members about privacy and data protection, we can instill the respect for privacy and security in all digital citizens."

The official Data Privacy Day theme is: Respecting Privacy, Safeguarding Data and Enabling Trust. Many unique celebrations leading up to Data Privacy Day 2013 and beyond are translating the theme into action. Data Privacy Day Champion EDUCAUSE – a nonprofit association and the foremost community of IT leaders and professionals committed to advancing higher education – has expanded Data Privacy Day into Data Privacy Month. In addition to numerous colleges offering on campus events, EDUCAUSE is offering free webinars. More information about EDUCAUSE's Data Privacy Month initiatives can be found at: http://www.educause.edu/dpm

"EDUCAUSE is thrilled to be a Data Privacy Day Champion and excited about expanding Data Privacy Day into Data Privacy Month for the second year in a row. Our aim is to help students, faculty, and staff on college campuses nationwide understand that data privacy is important to protecting their digital footprint and they need to exercise greater discretion over how their personal information is shared and managed online," said Rodney Petersen, managing director of the EDUCAUSE Washington Office.

A sample of events across the nation includes:

• The Privacy Gap, Jan. 23, 2013 The Churchill Club, Grand Hyatt San Francisco,  5:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m., Consumers are living more of their lives online and exposing their personal information in new ways using the multitude of devices and services available to them. At the same time, consumers' understanding of how to protect their privacy—and their confidence in corporate privacy practices—remains low.  What can shift consumer privacy behaviors and perceptions to narrow this gap? This expert roundtable will examine the latest trends in privacy practices across the online industry. The forward-looking discussion will include a look at the world of apps, juxtaposing the need to provide consumers with privacy protections with the concern that overly stringent oversight could stifle innovation.  For more information, visit: http://bit.ly/VQMGtc
• Privacy by Design: An Engineering Ethics Perspective, Jan. 23, 2013 Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, CA 7-8:30 p.m. Three outstanding computer scientists will offer their perspectives on the efforts to get privacy "baked into" new products, as well as on the role that engineering ethics plays in those efforts For more information, visit: http://www.scu.edu/events/index.cfm?sched=46233
• International Association of Privacy Professionals' Privacy After Hours Networking Events, Jan. 28, 2013, Nationwide and in London & Helsinki Privacy After Hours is an opportunity to get to know other privacy professionals in your city at an "after hours" venue for a casual evening of socializing and networking. Privacy After Hours are hosted by a local IAPP member. Anyone can attend. For more information, visit: https://www.privacyassociation.org/events_and_programs/privacy_after_hours

NCSA will also host Twitter Chat's on January 17^th and 31^st, 3 – 4 p.m. ET, use hashtag #ChatSTC. The chats will cover privacy related issues and are in honor of Data Privacy Day. For anyone interested in getting involved with Data Privacy Day, the newly launched Web portal offers a host of tips and resources for parents, teachers, educators, businesses and others at: http://www.staysafeonline.org/dpd. NCSA encourages companies and organizations to become a Champion by registering at: http://www.staysafeonline.org/data-privacy-day/champions. Data Privacy Day information is also available on Twitter at: www.twitter.com/DataPrivacyDay and the DPD Twitter hashtag is #DPD13. DPD updates and privacy tips are also available on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/DataPrivacyNCSA. Sponsorships are available. Please contact Aimee Larsen Kirkpatrick at aimee@staysafeonline.org.

About Data Privacy Day
Led by the National Cyber Security Alliance, Data Privacy Day began in the United States and Canada in January 2008 as an extension of the Data Protection Day celebration in Europe. The Day commemorates the 1981 signing of Convention 108 – the first legally binding international treaty dealing with privacy and data protection.  Intel is a Platinum sponsor of Data Privacy Day. Gold sponsors include AT&T, Facebook, Microsoft and Google. MasterCard and The George Washington University Law School are Silver sponsors and Reputation.com is a Small Business Sponsor.

About The National Cyber Security Alliance
The National Cyber Security Alliance is a non-profit organization. Through collaboration with the government, corporate, non-profit and academic sectors, the mission of the NCSA is to educate and empower a digital citizenry to use the Internet securely and safely protecting themselves and the technology they use and the digital assets we all share. NCSA board members include: ADP, AT&T, Bank of America, EMC Corporation, ESET, Facebook, Google, Intel, McAfee, Microsoft, PayPal, Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), Symantec, Trend Micro, Verizon and Visa. Visit www.staysafeonline.org for more information and join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/staysafeonline.

SOURCE National Cyber Security Alliance