{"id":2142,"date":"2025-10-22T08:59:56","date_gmt":"2025-10-22T08:59:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/2025\/10\/22\/artificial-intelligence-for-smes-how-to-protect-data\/"},"modified":"2025-10-22T08:59:56","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T08:59:56","slug":"artificial-intelligence-for-smes-how-to-protect-data","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/en\/2025\/10\/22\/artificial-intelligence-for-smes-how-to-protect-data\/","title":{"rendered":"Artificial intelligence for SMEs: how to protect data."},"content":{"rendered":"

Artificial intelligence and SMEs: protecting data is the first step toward innovation<\/strong><\/p>\n

In recent years, artificial intelligence<\/strong> has become a growth accelerator for manysmall and medium-sized companies. Thanks to increasingly accessible solutions, it is now possible to improve processes, reduce costs and make faster, more informed decisions.<\/p>\n

But whenever I work with a company on a digitization project, I always repeat the same concept: innovation only works if the data is protected. <\/strong>The rush to “try AI” without a proper security strategy can lead to serious risks,
\nranging from loss of sensitive information to GDPR violations with legal and economic consequences.<\/p>\n

In this article, I want to share a practical vademecum<\/strong> for those who want to integrate artificial intelligence tools into their business without putting their information assets at risk.<\/p>\n

1. Choose secure artificial intelligence tools for your SME<\/strong>
\nMany free tools are tempting, but their business model is often based on collecting user data.
\nMy advice, when I support an SME in making a choice, is always to:<\/p>\n

– Prefer<\/strong> fee-based solutions with clear security guarantees;
\n– Verify<\/strong> that the provider complies with international standards (ISO 27001, GDPR);
\n– Read<\/strong> the data processing policies carefully;<\/p>\n

2. Protect and anonymize sensitive corporate data<\/strong>
\nDuring testing or implementation, it often happens that you want to upload internal documents directly to the AI platform.
\nThis is a mistake to avoid. Better:<\/p>\n

– Removing<\/strong> or masking sensitive personal and corporate data;
\n– Create<\/strong> “clean” versions of documents;
\n– Share<\/strong> only strictly necessary information;<\/p>\n

3. Establish clear internal policies for the use of artificial intelligence<\/strong>
\nAn important part of my work is to support companies in creating policies on the use of AI.<\/strong>
\nThese include:<\/p>\n

– What tools to use and for what activities;
\n– Guidelines for data management;
\n– Internal training moments to raise staff awareness;<\/p>\n

4. Strengthen cybersecurity when implementing AI<\/strong>
\nIntegrating AI also means expanding the attack surface for cyber criminals. That is why I always suggest:<\/p>\n

– Constant software and systems updates<\/strong>;
\n– Multi-factor authentication<\/strong> (MFA);
\n– Regular backups<\/strong>;
\n– Periodic audits<\/strong> with a cybersecurity expert;<\/p>\n

5. Ensure legal compliance and GDPR compliance<\/strong>
\nEvery company should:<\/p>\n

– Ensure<\/strong> that the tool you choose complies with the GDPR;
\n– Enter into<\/strong> clear contracts with vendors, specifying how and when data will be retained;
\n– Retain<\/strong> evidence of any consent and authorization related to data processing;<\/p>\n

Conclusions<\/strong>
\nArtificial intelligence is a great opportunity for SMEs, but the rush to adopt it should not
\novershadow the most important aspect: data security.
\nAs a consultant, my goal is to help companies strike the right balance between
\ninnovation and protection, implementing AI strategically, securely and sustainably.<\/p>\n

If your company is considering adopting artificial intelligence tools and you want to<\/strong>
\nfigure out how to do it safely<\/strong>, contact me-I can help you devise a
\ntailored strategy and choose the tools best suited to your business.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Artificial intelligence and SMEs: protecting data is the first step toward innovation In recent years, artificial intelligence has become a growth accelerator for manysmall and medium-sized companies. Thanks to increasingly accessible solutions, it is now possible to improve processes, reduce costs and make faster, more informed decisions. But whenever I work with a company on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news-en"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2142","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2142"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2142\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2149,"href":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2142\/revisions\/2149"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2142"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2142"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maresarusso.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2142"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}