What is PII?
Personally Identifiable Information (PII) refers to any information that can identify an individual, either directly or indirectly.
Examples of PII
Direct Identifiers
- Social Security Numbers (SSN)
- Passport numbers
- Driver’s license numbers
- Credit card details
Indirect Identifiers
- Name combined with date of birth and ZIP code
- IP addresses
- Device identifiers
Sensitive PII
- Medical records
- Financial account details
- Biometric information
How to Protect PII in Emails
Organizations should implement multiple layers of protection for sensitive data shared through email.
Recommended Protection Methods
- Automatically classify emails before sending
- Detect PII in email content and attachments
- Encrypt emails containing sensitive data
- Block or quarantine emails with unencrypted PII
- Restrict external sharing using role-based access policies
- Maintain audit logs for all PII-related email activities
How miniOrange Email DLP Helps
miniOrange Email DLP scans outgoing emails and attachments in real time using:
- Regex-based detection
- Machine learning classifiers
- Content inspection engines
The system automatically applies actions such as:
- Block
- Encrypt
- Quarantine
- Notify
This happens before the email leaves the organization’s mail server.
