The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a major privacy and security regulation affecting all enterprises and individuals that do business in the EU. Companies based in one of the 28 EU member states must comply with GDPR, as must companies that have websites that collect data on EU residents.
The new regulation will go into effect on May 25, 2018. Any organization that is found to be in breach of GDPR regulations after that date can face heavy fines for non-compliance. The fines can be up to €20 million or 4% of global annual turnover, whichever is the highest.
Any company that handles the data of EU citizens must therefore start their compliance programs soon, although there is some confusion over what needs to be done. Various surveys have been conducted to assess preparedness for GDPR and all show a large percentage of companies are either not in compliance or have no plans at present to make changes to policies, procedures, and technology. A Dell survey conducted in late 2016 showed 97% of companies did not have a compliance plan.
MediaPro is offering assistance to companies looking to start their compliance programs. The MediaPro GDPR Privacy Awareness Solution has been developed to make compliance as painless as possible. MediaPro Managing Director Steve Conrad said, “It’s imperative companies invest in training now, rather than risk millions of dollars’ worth of fines for failing to comply.”
MediaPro GDPR Privacy Awareness Solution helps companies conduct risk assessments, plan for improvements to privacy and security policies and develop training plans for employees. The GDPR Privacy Awareness Solution meets the unique needs of each company and helps them assess and mitigate risks.
Tom Pendergast, MediaPro’s Chief Strategist for Security, Privacy, and Compliance said, “Proper training and education of your employees shouldn’t be taken lightly, and we’re thrilled to see a focus on privacy awareness training appear in the GDPR.” Pendergast also explained, “The sooner a company can implement a robust privacy awareness program aligned with the GDPR, the better prepared they’ll be to handle the regulations.”
The new GDPR Privacy Awareness Solution is now available through the firm’s Adaptive Awareness Portal.