Top Tips to Stay Compliant with GDPR

GDPR – The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), passed on May 25, 2018, is the later version of the Data Protection Act (DPA). It changed significantly to protect digital privacy. According to Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the transition from DPA to GDPR is relatively straightforward, making GDPR compliance reasonably easy. Before diving into the top tips to stay compliant with GDPR, let’s glimpse at what is GDPR.

What is GDPR?

GDPR compliance requirements consist of hundreds of pages. Going through that is not that simple, and at the same time, it is compulsory for organizations looking forward to customer engagements.
The GDPR is the most demanding and most strict law globally, which the European Union passed. The GDPR law takes place against privacy violations causing millions in penalties for companies who don’t comply.
Violation fines under GDPR are very high. Two tiers of fines include €20 million or 4% of global revenue, whichever is the highest.
GDPR helps enhance personal privacy rights, data protecting priority, breach reporting, and other penalties for not complying accordingly.
Before jumping in the top tips to stay compliant with GDPR, please acknowledge that these are not legal advice; contacting a lawyer should be the best option for compliance. This article is intended to share basic ideology and suggestions regarding GDPR. Here are the top tips to stay compliant with GDPR:

Protecting Personal Data

According to GDPR, customers have the right to access their data on demand and correct errors if there are any. Customers can wipe their data and export it to a readable format. Within 30 days of the request (40 days previously), the digital data export file should be ready for customers to save locally.
To maintain fairness and transparency, customers should have a clear idea of which data is collected and if that data makes sense for the cause. Personal data are not limited to interaction, financial information, IP, or email addresses; it includes public and other relative information.
Organizations collecting personal data should remove old and irrelevant data from their database when it becomes obsolete. As a result, integrity and confidentially remain on par. The data controller can and will be held accountable, so strictly following the instructions is the best bet.

Privacy Notice

One of the first concerns to stay compliant with GDPR is to raise privacy awareness among company employees and customers. Privacy notices help customers or clients know their data is collected for valid reasons, and they have the authority to wipe those at any moment.
According to GDPR restrictions, the company should brief customers on why they are collecting the data. By default, the agreement should be unticked, and customers will have to tick the button manually to opt-in.

Data Control and Notifications:

From DPA to GDPR, the new regulation on security requirements demands priority notification sent to customers if breached, along with total confidentiality to protect information. And if that is not possible, you’re not eligible for GDPR standards yet.
Also, letting the customer know how their data is processed raises another concern under the new jurisdiction.  This is the opposite of doxing.

Transparency Policies

GDPR compliance comes to action by replacing DPA, as it was quite off from correctly processing data transparency policies. Customers had little to no idea where, how, why, or when data was collected and how it could affect them.
The ruling says customers should permit consent that their data is being collected for processing. Data wipe and processing details should be mentioned clearly without making any complex loophole.

Proper Employee Training

Businesses and organizations should have employees who respect customer data privacy, and for that, proper training should be provided by the company. Employees will comply with data policies, and a Data Protection Officer needs to take command.
Organizations with over 250 employees require a Data Protection Officers lookout. It should be reasonably easy to process that information regarding the customer’s choice.

Reviewing Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA):

The sales team in organizations and businesses will have less opportunity to prioritize tasks if data is not processed. But to process a large amount, they have to demonstrate accountability transparently.
DPIA helps to process data that may result in a high risk to individuals. On December 31, 2021, when the Brexit transition period ended, GDPR retained laws alongside the DPA.

Evaluating current data and processing them as classified gives borderline data access to organizations within and outside the EU.

Review Consent Agreements

While relying on individuals to process their data, always consent to meet GDPR requirements. If the mechanism is altered for collecting consent, GDPR mentioned that it should be said clearly. A compelling audit trail may need to take place to record and collect alternative consent.
Also, proof of identity should be covered with a photo of the driver’s license, passport, NID, birth certificate. For address proofing, utility bill, credit card, or bank statement (no more than three months old), a drivers’ license is required.

Appointing a Data Protection Officer (DPO):

We briefly mentioned DPO previously, and here we are going to shed a bit of light. The UK GDPR requires the duty of a DPO for carrying out processing activities. DPO’s act as a high-level authority and look over every bit of action taken by employees who handle sensitive information.
DPOs assist you in monitoring compliance and advises regarding data protection. DPOs act as the bridge between Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs) and Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Externally appointed employees or a mutual DPO can be hired among multiple organizations for GDPR compliance.

Children’s Data Protection

There is no denying children make up for a broad audience on the web, and it is the first time their privacy is prioritized. GDPR responsibly considered children’s data protection matters. Art 8 of GDPR point (a) of Article 6(1) mentions that services given to a child below 16 should be lawful. Consent should be provided by a guardian or by an accountable person holding parental responsibility for the child.
For children under 13, parental or guardian consent should occur before offering any service, taking permission, or processing any data.

Develop a Framework to Support Policies and Procedures

Individuals now have data-driven decisions and the right to know about investigations and fraud detection reports. In the era of technology, AI mainly processes data.
It is not possible to handle millions-billions individual data by employees. AI tools are manually used to change processing characteristics. Maintaining them properly and always keeping one step ahead on API security should be prioritized to save the environment secure and steady.

Right to be Forgotten

Top tips to stay compliant with GDPR should end with one of the most exciting regulations. It is the right to be forgotten, also known as “the right to erasure.” It gives individuals the authority to ask for a data wipe at any given moment.
Organizations have to be ready for that moment at all times. Though a sudden wipe may not occur for reasons such as that data is used to exercise the right of freedom or comply with the legal ruling, public health purposes, and similar matters. The official GDPR right to be forgotten explains everything there is concerning this matter.
GDPR compliance motive is not to cause loss to organizations but to give customers’ privacy a fighting chance in the modern world.