GENERAL DATA PROTECTION REGULATIONS

Adopted on April 14, 2016, and enforceable from May 25, 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) marks a major shift in data protection laws across the European Union. Initiated by the European Commission in January 2012 to update data protection for the digital age, it took four years of negotiation and planning to finalize the regulation and determine its implementation. But what does GDPR truly mean for you, your business, and your customers?

Since its approval on April 14, 2016, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has become a major concern for data protection professionals, data marketers, and security experts. With the compliance deadline set for May 25, 2018, GDPR led to significant investments in time and resources to meet its rigorous requirements.

Established by the European Union Parliament, GDPR is a comprehensive set of regulations aimed at giving citizens greater control over their personal data. Its mission is to simplify the regulatory framework for businesses while protecting individuals from privacy violations and data breaches, ensuring that both EU citizens and businesses can thrive in the digital economy.

These reforms address contemporary challenges such as malware, data breaches, cybersecurity, and hacking. GDPR provides a detailed framework of requirements that organizations must follow to collect personal data legally and manage it under strict conditions. Organizations must safeguard this data from misuse and exploitation or face substantial penalties for non-compliance.

Before diving into GDPR compliance efforts, it’s important to assess whether and how GDPR applies to your organization. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is relevant if your organization is based in the EU, if you process data about individuals in the EU for business purposes, or if you monitor the behavior of individuals in the EU. In essence, major organizations around the world must adhere to GDPR to avoid significant penalties.

GDPR distinguishes between two primary roles: Data Controllers and Data Processors.

Data Controllers are individuals, public authorities, agencies, or other entities that determine the purposes and means of processing personal data, either alone or in conjunction with others. It is essential to understand whether your organization acts as a data controller, as controllers bear significant legal responsibilities under GDPR.

Data Processors are individuals, public authorities, agencies, or other entities that process personal data on behalf of the data controller. Examples include companies handling accounting or payroll services. While processors must ensure they work with GDPR-compliant controllers, the primary legal responsibility for data protection falls on the controllers.

Central to GDPR is the concept of personal data, defined as “information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (‘data subject’).” GDPR does not apply to data that “does not relate to an identified or identifiable natural person” or to data that is anonymized so that the data subject cannot be identified.

Pseudonymization is a key concept in GDPR, representing one of its significant impacts on European data protection laws. Pseudonymization involves separating data from direct identifiers, making it impossible to link the data to an individual without additional information kept separately. While GDPR encourages pseudonymization as a risk-reducing measure, it does not allow this practice to circumvent other GDPR obligations. Marketers should be aware that pseudonymized data still falls under GDPR regulations and is intended to reduce risks, not to avoid compliance requirements.

While much of the attention around GDPR has focused on its impact on businesses, this regulation also has profound implications for consumers, particularly in enhancing the customer experience. As customer experience becomes a critical factor for future success, data has become a key battleground, and GDPR provides organizations with a unique opportunity to reassess their data strategies and strengthen customer relationships.

By complying with GDPR, organizations are required to gain a deeper understanding of the data they collect, including the reasons for its collection, the methods for obtaining consent, and the parties with whom the information is shared. GDPR emphasizes transparency in these practices, enabling individuals to have greater control over their data and how it is used.

• The right to be informed
• The right of access
• The right of rectification
• The right to erasure
• The right to restrict processing
• The right to data portability
• The right to object
• Rights of automated decision making and profiling

With GDPR now in effect, organizations have been working diligently in the days and weeks leading up to the enforcement date to secure customer consent for new privacy and consent policies. One of the most significant changes introduced by GDPR is the strict regulation of data transfers to countries outside the EU.

At GlobalEmailingData, we are fully dedicated to GDPR compliance, and our B2B contact database adheres to all personal data privacy requirements mandated by the regulation. We also encourage our partners and clients who handle, process, or control the personal data of EU individuals to prepare comprehensively for GDPR compliance.