If your business does not have a presence in the EU It could be processing personal data for EU citizens. These include Data controllers or processors who handle billing addresses, delivery addresses, banking online account credentials, and various other information about individuals.
Consumers must be informed about how their information will be used in clear language. Right to withdraw is also available to them at any point.
What is the GDPR?
Most likely, you've received privacy notifications emails from financial institutions as well as personal email accounts, and social media apps in early 2018, thanks to the newly-enacted European Union GDPR laws that went into effect in the spring of 2018. The GDPR privacy rule is a privacy regulation with teeth--it creates one set of guidelines and authority to safeguard citizens throughout all of the EU as well as the EEA free trade zone.
GDPR stipulates three different objects to handle, secure and process information. These are data controllers (or data processors) Data subjects, data controllers and data processors. The controllers of data decide on how and when personal data will be used. This includes business owners as well as employees. Third parties are data processors. They do specific work to the controller. Cloud storage services like Tresorit or email providers like Proton Mail are examples of data processors.
Individuals are named as data subjects. They are the ones whose information is being processed. These are the people who need to review the statement and signify via explicit action that they consent to the collecting, processing and storage of their PII information. It's crucial to act explicitly, as it is no longer acceptable that consent be obtained from silence or lack of action. The GDPR mandates that users expressly consent to the collection of data and use, so pre-checked boxes and pages of legalese will no longer constitute freely-given an informed, explicit consent.
Individuals have the right to request a copy of the PII from any business that holds the information. The law requires firms provide their data in an easy-to-use format for other entities. It's an important step for companies to be in compliance with GDPR.
Data portability is an additional feature of GDPR. This implies that data could be transferred from one organization to another without the need to be entered again. This can benefit both the firm and customers.
To stay in compliance business owners will need be able to maintain their tech platforms and data structures. The basic idea is that every department of the business must come together and determine which areas of the business' data is kept and where it's stored. It is then up to them to map out this data in order to ensure that each aspect of data about an individual is taken care of.
What impact will GDPR have on my company?
The GDPR is among the largest and most extensive rules that are affecting businesses in the present. The GDPR has been in force since the 25th of May, 2018 It brings numerous improvements to how businesses process personal data. It impacts every aspect of an organization, from marketing to IT and more. The new regulations also provide the consumer with a higher level security against cyberattacks that are more advanced like ransomware.
Even though GDPR has been in operation for a full year and a half, the majority of businesses are finding it difficult to adhere to its regulations. Research shows that only 29 percent of firms are completely compliant with GDPR. It's a substantial quantity, and is an unsurprising that smaller companies struggle the most to achieve the compliance issue.
The GDPR requires that all organizations obtain the consent of individuals prior to using their personal data. The person you add to your list of subscribers only if the individual has opt-in. It is also important to clearly state the purpose behind your information collection, and how it is going to be employed for. Additionally, you should demonstrate that individuals were aware of their rights, and provided their consent.
The GDPR also demands that companies only collect relevant data to be processed. So, you aren't able to employ CCTV to keep an eye on your office as well as Google Analytics to track who are visiting your website, in the absence of a current or a potential client. Furthermore, the GDPR states that any personal data collected must be processed in a secure way.
In response, the GDPR required businesses to review the policies they use to handle data and privacy policies. This is especially true in the world of e-commerce, which has had to create new procedures and protocols for collecting and processing customer information. In certain cases, this has been challenging, as this has resulted in some companies having to abandon certain features of their websites and platforms to ensure they are fully compliant with GDPR.
What can I do in order to make myself more prepared for GDPR?
The GDPR will take effect 25 May 2018. To be in compliance with the GDPR, organizations must make essential changes to their systems for protecting data. Businesses who fail to comply with the requirements of this new law may be penalized as high as 20 million euros or 4 percent of their total revenue (whichever is greater).
Start by performing a comprehensive review of all the information in the company. Write down all personal data is stored, collected and utilize. Next, consider how it connects with the legitimate uses defined in the GDPR. It will enable you to pinpoint aspects that must be changed in order to create actions. You should place these tasks in order of risk and do not forget to add resource (time/budget) estimates of each undertaking.
Review any third-party services or companies that you use for your business. It is important to ensure that these companies comply with GDPR and already have a contract in place with regards to any exchange of data to the EU. It's a great suggestion to conduct a risk assessment of any activities or processes that involve children's data, as the GDPR has added requirements around age verification as well as consent and processing for this type of data.
It's also a good option to make sure that currently in place consents for the collection and use of personal information meet the requirements of GDPR and require consent be specific, granular and easy to revoke. In addition, examine your procedure for dealing with requests by individuals who wish to exercise the rights that are now available. These include: the right gdpr gap analysis of information; the access right; the right to rectification; restriction right; and the deletion rights.
Not least, ensure that your company is well-equipped to manage privacy breaches. Develop an internal response group and a plan of action to inform the people affected. Additionally, think about naming the Data Protection Officer, if necessary. Check that your privacy policies have been reviewed and updated, and are accessible to everyone at the workplace.
What can I do to avoid effects of GDPR on my company?
How you manage the personal information you collect will have a major impact on the GDPR's effects on your business. Personal data can be defined under the law as any information which can be used to identify an individual. It includes name, contact particulars, financial data such as medical records, and IP addresses. If you have this type of data, then you need to follow the GDPR's guidelines to avoid fines and sanctions.
The best part is that you can protect your business from the impact of GDPR by creating processes for ensuring compliance. The first step is to perform a data audit in order to identify the type of personal data your company has as well as how they're being used. After you've completed this audit and you've compiled plans to revise your privacy and data protection policies as well as procedures. It could be as simple as requiring the double opt-in option to newsletter subscriptions, making sure that you've got a legal reason to gather personal information and also ensuring that your suppliers and subcontractors are GDPR compliant as well.
The process of identifying and respond to data breaches is a different way you can avoid GDPR impacting your business. The law states that you need to inform regulators within 72 hours of finding an incident, which is why you'll need to establish an effective system to immediately detect and address data incidents. It may be necessary for you to set up a team to examine old and new data in order to meet GDPR's regulations. You should also include consent forms to your website which clearly describe the way your company uses customers' data. Also, you should establish a method to handle withdrawals of consent given by existing customers and also update any relationship with third-party providers to make sure they are in compliance with GDPR.
It's important to understand that the GDPR applies to companies of all sizes, not only those within the EU. All businesses that deal with data derived from EU citizens as well as those within the European Economic Area are required to adhere to the GDPR's stipulations.
As per the GDPR, consent is the top priority to consumers, and companies will not permitted to conceal any terms within long agreements that customers haven't read. It's a good thing for customers and increases trust in your organization. This also encourages your company to consolidate its platforms for data which can prove helpful for departments such as sales and marketing, who benefit from better targeting of target audience.