Importance of Data Privacy and Compliance

The advent of electronic media has led to some organizations collecting their customer’s personal information and using that data as they please. As cyber threats and identity theft took center stage, regulations failed to keep up. However, with time, governments and agencies all over the world have laid down data privacy and compliance standards. The core objective of this regulation is to transfer the ownership of people’s personal information back to them. This way, they will be the undisputed owner of their identity. The impact these regulations have on organizations is complex and far-reaching. Companies now have to transform how they collect, store, protect, and manage personal information. They also have to comply with the rights conferred to customers. If you collect personal information, you can’t sit on the sidelines anymore.

In this article, you will learn about data privacy and compliance and the role eDiscovery plays in it. Let’s start by discussing what data protection policies are.

Data Protection Policy (DPP)

A data protection policy refers to a security policy that focuses on standardizing the use, management, and monitoring of data. These policies have been created to ensure the protection and security of data that is consumed, stored, and managed by the organization. Even though these policies are not required by law, they can help you comply with regulations and standards of data protection.

A DPP should cover the data that your company stores, including offsite locations, on-premise storage locations, and cloud services. Through this policy, you will be able to ensure the integrity and security of data—both data-in-transit and data-in-rest. It demonstrates your commitment to ensuring the privacy and protection of consumer data. If your organization experiences a data breach or is subjected to compliance audits, the policy will be evidence of your commitment to the data protection policy.

Casepoint can help you with requests related to GDPR, CCPA, and more. The platform can help you respond to data breaches as well while strengthening your compliance.

Now that you have an understanding of a data protection policy, let’s get into some of the most well-known data privacy laws in the world.

General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

This is known to be the toughest security and privacy law in the world. Even though the European Union (EU) drafted and passed this law, it imposes an obligation on any organization that collects or targets data that is related to citizens of the EU. Put into effect on May 25 2018, this regulation levies heavy fines on organizations that violate its security and privacy standards. The penalties can even reach tens of millions of dollars.

The GDPR was a way for Europe to showcase to the world its firm stance on privacy and security of data. This came at a time when more and more people were entrusting their data with cloud services. Since this regulation is fairly light on specifics, complying with GDPR can be daunting for any enterprise.

California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)

This is state-wide data privacy and compliance law regulating how businesses handle the personal information of residents of California. It was brought into effect on January 1 2020. This law is applicable to any for-profit business that sells information of over 50,000 Californians annually, derives over 50% of its annual revenue selling California residents’ personal information, or has an annual gross revenue of more than $25 million.

California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA)

This is another state-wide data privacy bill that expands significantly upon the CCPA. It was passed on 3 November 2020. It can be considered as an addendum to CCPA, which strengthens the rights of California residents. It also tightens the regulations on the use of personal information by a business. The bill also established a new agency for data privacy enforcement in the state called the California Privacy Protection Agency (CCPA).

Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act (VCDPA)

Governor Ralph Northam signed the VCDPA law on 2 March 2021, making Virginia the second state to enact its own consumer data security and privacy law. The VCDPA builds on the early legislation of CCPA and GDPR. However, unlike in California and Europe, the VCDPA managed to get support from businesses like Microsoft and Amazon. This is because its compliance and coverage are considered to be less onerous than the other regulations.

Data Subject Access Request (DSAR)

Now, let’s get into what a customer can do to ensure their data privacy. A Data Subject Access Request (DSAR) is a request submitted by an individual to a business asking about the personal information that has been collected, used, and stored. The DSAR can also include asking for certain actions to be taken with the data, including opting out of data collection, amending incorrect data, and deleting data.

A DSAR requests a list of all the personal information that you might have on the sender. However, there are cases in which the subject will have requested specific details. Regardless of what information the subject has requested, you are obligated to provide it. Here are a few examples of information that customers might request:

It is important to note that your customers don’t need to have a reason to request this information. They can submit a DSAR at any time. As a business, you can only ask questions to verify the customer’s identity and locate the requested information. If you don’t have all the personal information of your customers in a single, convenient place, this might become time-consuming and exhausting. You might want to have a data mapping process that tracks your data and its location. You can also get a reporting tool that is capable of pulling information from different sources and generating a DSAR response.

Today, companies are spending time dealing with an increasing number of claims from customers and working on their liabilities policies. The large volume of data and its complex nature make it almost impossible to monitor personal data manually. What you need is privacy compliance software that can help you analyze, document, and analyze your data protection processes. Here are a few potential applications of a privacy compliance program:

With the increasing risk of personal liability and the threat of hefty fines, it is more important than ever for businesses to use privacy compliance software that will allow them to work securely and efficiently. If you own a business, you must engage with the internet from time to time. It is your responsibility to answer questions like whose data is collected, what happens to it, and who you share it with.

Casepoint can help you with data processing of over 600 file types. Its built-in AI and advanced search features facilitate a faster review. Apart from this, Casepoint can also save you from hours of manual redactions. This eDiscovery software comes with an auto-redaction feature that you can use for personally identifiable information.

Even though there are several data privacy and compliance laws in place, the concept of data privacy compliance is extremely complex. Many companies often get lost in the minutiae of legal requirements. There are some companies that don’t take the issue of data privacy breaches seriously. But, with the rise in cyberattacks, it is more important than ever to have solid data security practices in place. Data is multiplying at an increasing rate by the minute. Controlling and managing this data can be difficult, which is why you need Casepoint to help manage compliance regimens.