Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM) 2025 – 400 Free Practice Questions to Pass the Exam

A data breach is defined as an incident where there is unauthorized access to or exposure of personal information. This means that an individual's sensitive data, such as social security numbers, financial information, or health records, is accessed by someone who does not have permission to view or use it. This can occur through various means, including hacking, accidental disclosures, or lost/stolen devices.

The focus is on the unauthorized aspect, which is critical in distinguishing a breach from other data management activities. In this context, the other options do not qualify as data breaches. Unintentional data corrections, routine data access by authorized personnel, and scheduled data deletion processes involve either proper handling of data that should pose no threat to privacy or actions that are expected behavior within an organization managing its data responsibly. Therefore, the clear identification of unauthorized access or exposure of personal information as a data breach emphasizes the need for stringent security measures to protect personal data from such incidents.