What exactly is GDPR?

GDPR is a solution to customers’ woes!

The entire world is familiar and “scared” after the latest cases of data breaches.

Well, in today’s era, data breaches are real. Some people with malicious intent steal your data and then eventually mishandle it.

GDPR is one such legal framework, introduced by the European Commission to eliminate such mishaps. This data privacy revolution sets guidelines for the collection and processing of personal information of individuals within the European Union (EU).

When does GDPR come into force and whom does it apply to? 

Though the European Commission came up with a plan to protect valuable data so as to make Europe ‘fit for the digital age’. However, the regulation was enforced after six long years. Thereafter, it has finally come into force today, i.e. 25th May 2018.

Coming to the application of GDPR, it applies to all the organizations operating within the European Union, no matter what scale or size. The regulation further applies to the businesses outside EU which offer goods or services to customers or businesses in the EU.

GDPR compliance: 

As per the terms of GDPR, the organizations have to ensure the following things without failing:

• The personal data (name, address, photos, and IP address) should be gathered legally and under strict conditions.
• The data is protected from misuse and exploitation.

In case an organization fails at doing so, it will have to face certain penalties. They may have to pay fines up to €20 million or 4% of their global annual sales, whichever is bigger.

The ultimate warning:

If an organization has always abided by the respective data protection rules, GDPR won’t be much of an issue. However, for the businesses that have taken data privacy lightly all these years, most importantly the small-scale businesses that don’t even realize they are impacted, GDPR is going to be a real trouble.

GDPR, in no way, doesn’t stop the organizations from serving their customers and collecting their data. However, the businesses need to ensure that they are collecting and storing this valuable customer data on a lawful basis. They further have to ensure that they respect the wishes of people who want to have their data deleted.

The regulation mainly aims at boosting the rights of individuals and enable them to control their data. So, the organizations that fail at providing the desired proofs of proper handling of sensitive data, they are sure to face penalties within 72 hours of the data breach.

Does your organization take good care of its customers’ data?