Contact centres regularly deal with sensitive customer data, from payment card details to personal identification numbers.
Managing this information responsibly is critical, not only to protect customer trust but also to stay compliant with regulations.
Yet many contact centres still rely on outdated or risky methods that expose them to legal and reputational harm.
To find out more about fixing common contact centre broken processes, we asked John Ortiz, Technology Sales Manager at MiaRec, to explain how sensitive customer data is compromised by human error.
Video: Call Centre Broken Processes: Human Error Compromises Sensitive Customer Data
Watch the video below to hear John explain how sensitive customer data is compromised by human error:
With thanks to John Ortiz, Technology Sales Manager at MiaRec, for contributing to this video.
This video was originally published in our article ‘Key Signs of Broken Processes (and How to Fix Them)’
Three Common Problems With Data Handling
Many contact centres are still relying on outdated practices that can expose sensitive data and lead to compliance issues, as John explains:
“Contact centres often handle sensitive customer information, such as payment card details, and social security numbers, but how they manage this data it can vary.
Typically, they either do nothing and store the calls with sensitive info, or they use a pause–resume function, where agents are supposed to pause the recording when the customers provide sensitive information and resume it afterwards.
However, this method is prone to human error as agents frequently forget to pause, or resume, the recording, and housing sensitive customer data can lead to legal and regulatory issues.”
1. Sensitive Data Is Stored Without Safeguards
In some centres, calls containing sensitive information are recorded and stored without any attempt to protect or remove the data. This is a clear risk, especially in highly regulated industries.
2. Manual Pause-and-Resume Is Unreliable
A common workaround is to ask agents to pause call recordings when sensitive data is shared, and resume once it’s done.
In theory, this keeps the data out of the recording, but in practice, it’s prone to error. Agents may forget to pause, or fail to resume, leading either to missed call data or unintentional data capture.
3. Compliance Risks Are High
Whether due to human error or lack of proper systems, storing unredacted sensitive information puts contact centres at risk of breaching data protection regulations. This can lead to fines, audits, and loss of customer trust.
How to Fix It
To reduce risk and improve compliance, contact centres need to adopt more reliable, automated approaches to handling sensitive data, as John continues:
“A solution to mitigate this risk is automatic data redaction, which automatically removes sensitive information from audio files and transcripts, ensuring the security of customer data.”
Implement Automatic Data Redaction
The most effective solution is to use automatic redaction technology. This identifies and removes sensitive information, like card numbers or personal identifiers, from both call audio and transcripts.
It eliminates reliance on manual processes and ensures that customer data isn’t stored unnecessarily.
Remove the Burden From Agents
By automating redaction, agents can focus on the customer without having to remember technical steps like pausing a recording. This reduces stress and error, while maintaining compliance in the background.
Stay Compliant by Design
With automatic redaction in place, your processes become compliant by default. This gives peace of mind during audits and helps maintain customer trust through secure, responsible data handling.
Author: Robyn Coppell
Reviewed by: Xander Freeman
Published On: 4th Jul 2025
Read more about - Video, Compliance, Contact Centre Processes, John Ortiz, MiaRec, Videos
