Technology

GDPR Compliance Checklist for IT Departments

Compliance with GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) is an ongoing process rather than a one-off activity. In addition to implementing measures to abide by the regulations, you must check for compliance frequently. You also need to conduct regular risk assessments when your circumstances change. 

GDPR

The GDPR is the world’s strictest security and privacy law. Complying with it gives your IT department an extra layer of protection. Here is a GDPR compliance checklist for your IT department. 

1. Create a GDPR Diary/Data Register

This is a detailed record of how your organization practices GDPR compliance. You would have to create it after you have identified your data sources. The diary should spell out data flow all through your organization. The more details you include, the better. 

In case of an audit, your GDPR diary could be your proof of compliance. If you ever experience a data breach while trying to institute a compliance framework, the data register could prove your progress while trying to boost data security. 

2. Establish a GDPR Help Desk

When switching to a GDPR help desk, take advantage of GDPR help desk software with the following features:

  • It should have additional security measures to promote users’ safety
  • It should give your support agents the appropriate tools to manage personal data. This could include rectifying, deleting, exporting, and restricting it. 
  • You can find it as a self-hosted solution.
  • It should feature extra features. 

3. Review Data Protection Policies

This is another important tip when trying to comply with GDPR policies. If you already have a data protection policy, it is time to review it. Make sure that your policy merges with all the other security policies that you have in place. It should set privacy settings at the top level, and it has to implement the privacy by design principle. 

The main objective should be to make sure your data is gathered, preserved, and processed in the most secure way possible. Data should not be available to unnecessary people. Your systems should only process the categories of personal data that you need for specific purposes.

4. Establish Your Supervisory Authority

All members have to provide at least one independent public authority that is responsible for overseeing GDPR compliance. Ask your supervisory authorities compliance-related questions. If there is a breach, let them know about it within 72 hours of detection. 

5. Perform a Data Protection Impact Assessment

Another crucial GDPR requirement is the ability to demonstrate compliance. You must also be able to prove that data is processed legally and in compliance with all security measures. 

If, for example, your company has 250 employees or more or you deal with high-risk processing, it would be best to make an updated and detailed list of your processing activities with private data. 

Regular Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs) will help you:

  • Establish data protection risks
  • Find out the potential effect of your processing activities on data subjects
  • Mitigate risks before they result in data security problems
  • determine if your company is compliant with the GDPR

Proper documentation is a critical aspect of GDPR compliance. In addition, it promotes accountability and a sense of trust. 

GDPR compliance is about more than just avoiding legal complications or beating the competition. It could have plenty of unexpected benefits for your business as well. Its benefits include boosting your company reputation, protecting personal data, and increasing customer loyalty.

 Even though it isn’t mandatory, non-compliance could harm your business. It could attract fines and loss of personal data. While there is a lot to do, the above tips play a major role in your journey towards compliance.