The EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has now been in force for five years, and GDPR’s reach is global, as any company that offers goods or services to anyone in the EU are required to comply. The most recent fines show that both large and small businesses are subject to regulators’ scrutiny, with over €1 billion in fines coming in the past 12 months.

Article 5 of the General Data Protection Regulation requires demonstrable compliance with the regulations. Our GDPR compliance checklist is designed to help you determine whether your organisation is compliant with the GDPR. Following the steps in this checklist will help you identify any areas where your organisation might be falling short with regard to GDPR compliance and take the necessary steps to ensure you meet your obligations and avoid any potential fines and legal issues.

Data protection rules under GDPR

How GDPR-aware is your business and staff? Does your organisation have a process for data portability? GDPR legislation allows individuals to obtain and reuse their personal data for their own purposes across different services. Other elements include the requirement for certain organisations to appoint a Data Protection Officer. Further, under GDPR, sensitive information includes biometric and genetic information. This means that organisations should familiarise themselves with GDPR and ensure staff understand how to process personal data.

Use our data protection checklist to ensure your business is GDPR-compliant

VinciWorks has created a checklist that will help you identify areas where your data protection procedures could be stronger.

GDPR checklist

Are you familiar with GDPR?

Staff who regularly process data should be familiar with GDPR and the changes in data protection under GDPR. You can download a guide to GDPR here.

Do you know how many personal records you process per year?

This is important information to be aware of. Companies that process over 5,000 personal records per year are required to appoint a Data Protection Officer (DPO).

Do you have a process for data portability?

The right to data portability allows individuals to obtain and reuse their personal data for their own purposes across different services. You must provide the personal data in a structured, commonly used and machine readable form. Open formats include CSV files. Machine readable means that the information is structured so that software can extract specific elements of the data. This enables other organisations to use the data. The information must be provided free of

charge.

Do you have a process for data erasure?

The right to erasure is also known as ‘the right to be forgotten’. The broad principle underpinning this right is to enable an individual to request the deletion or removal of personal data whether there is no compelling reason for its continued processing. Under the DPA, the right to erasure is limited to processing that causes unwarranted and substantial damage or distress. Under the GDPR, this threshold is not present.

Do you inform individuals about the data you process?

Being transparent and providing accessible information to individuals about how you will use their personal data is a key element of GDPR. The most common way to provide this information is in a privacy notice. To cover all these elements you will need to consider the following issues when planning a privacy notice: 

• What information is being collected? 
• Who is collecting it? 
• How is it collected? 
• Why is it being collected? 
• How will it be used? 
• Who will it be shared with? 
• What will be the effect of this on the individuals concerned? 
• Is the intended use likely to cause individuals to object or complain?

Do you have justification for transferring data outside of the EU?

GDPR imposes restrictions on the transfer of personal data outside the European Union, to third countries or international organisations. Personal data may only be transferred outside of the EU in compliance with the conditions for transfer set out in Chapter V of GDPR.

Have you appointed a Data Protection Officer?

Organisations are required to employ a DPO if they fit into at least one of these categories: process over 5,000 personal records per year, employ 250 staff members or more, or are in the public sector. Existing DPOs will have their roles strengthened and will report to the highest levels of management.

Do you have a Data Protection Policy in place?

We strongly recommend having an up-to-date Data Protection Policy in place. The document should detail who the DPO is, the procedures for processing data and the responsibilities of each department when processing data. All staff should be aware of the policy. You can download a Data Protection Policy template that can be edited to suit your business here.

Do you have a Privacy Policy in place that can be easily found on your company website?

A privacy policy explains what information is collected, how the information is used and why it is being collected. The policy should be made available on the company website.

When processing data, are the following principles met?

• The processing is lawful, fair and transparent
• Are you transparent about what the personal data is being used for?
• The data is collected for a specific purpose
• The data is necessary for its purpose
• The data must be accurate and kept up to date
• Data is not kept for longer than necessary
• The data is kept safe and secure

Is the data your organisation processes considered sensitive information?

Organisations that process data containing sensitive information about an individual must also appoint a DPO. The following is considered sensitive data:

• Racial or ethnic origin
• Political opinions
• Information about their physical or mental health
• Religious beliefs
• Information about their sexual life
• Information about any existing or past criminal convictions against them

Do you have sufficient data protection training in place?

We recommend that all employees whose role requires them to process or store personal data undertake data protection training. The training should provide the latest information in data protection policy and law, as well as help staff understand how data protection laws affect their role within the organisation.

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A host of GDPR resources on one page

VinciWorks has published a GDPR resource page that contains a bank of resources, from policy templates and guides to free GDPR training demos on one central page. You can view the page and download a host of resources by clicking here.