GDPR Affects Small Businesses Too? What Impact Will GDPR Have On Small Businesses?

Companies across Europe are scrambling to work as per the guidelines provided by the new Data protection guidelines. However, the point of concern will be to see that how does it impact the small and medium scale industries.

As we know that the General Data Protection Regulation will apply to all the states of EU from 25th May 2018 the residents of EU are busy discussing what kind of personal Data the organizations would want to collect and how are they going to make use of it.

By going through a complete rundown on the points that GDPR entails you will get to learn that the companies would need a clear consent via opt-ins to make use of the public Data and they must provide the purpose for which they will be needing those Data. It is the responsibility of the companies to inform the people if they wish to use their data for the defined purpose. And each time they use this Data they need to gain the consent and in case of breaching the given process will result in heavy penalties and this time the rules will be very stringent.

It will be interesting to see that how the GDPR implementationgoing to affect the small and medium-size companies. Basically, the European General Data Protection Regulation is built around two key principles.

Providing more control to the citizens and residents for the use of their personal data

Unifying regulation that stands across the European Union (EU) by Simplifying the regulations for international businesses.

Before discussing in details about the implication of GDPR on small and medium businesses it is important to bear in mind that the GDPR guidelines are applicable to all kinds of businesses that use personal data of EU citizens which implies that even the companies that are based out of EU will also come under its purview.

There is an elaborate checklist outlined for the small and medium-sized Businesses:

1. Be well versed in your Data as you will need to demonstrate an understanding of the types of personal data
2. Get clear consents to process personal data as these activities will become even more complex under the GDPR as the approvals need to be clear, specific and explicit.
3. Be very particular about your security measures and policies as all these should be GDPR.
4. Train your employees, and report a serious breach within 72 hours. Make sure that all your employees has a clear understanding about the factors that lead to personal data breach and results in any red flags.
5. Discuss and Decide whether there is a need to employ a Data Protection Officer (DPO). Typically all small businesses will be exempt. Still, if your company’s principal activities involve ‘regular or systematic’ monitoring of data subjects on a large scale you will be required to hire a DPO.
6. Conduct due-diligence on your supply chain.

Originally published at www.wenso.co.uk.