[vc_row css_animation=”” row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”full_width” angled_section=”no” text_align=”left” background_image_as_pattern=”without_pattern”][vc_column][vc_column_text]GDPR for your website and what you need to know.
You will probably have heard a lot about GPDR recently and if you haven’t what planet have you been on? But what exactly is GPDR and how does it effect your business and your website? Well we have put this guide together to try explain some of the myths about GPDR and also what you will need to do regarding your website prior to the 25th May.
Frequently asked questions.
When does the GDPR stand for?
GDPR stands for general data protection regulations. This means that any information being used by your site, be it from Google analytics, email forms or any other data collection service, needs to comply with the GDPR.
Why is this coming into effect?
Lets be honest, a data breech of any kind is never a good thing and as technology progresses we all store more and more of our personal data online and this needs to be policed in some way. There has been laws to protect this data in the past but GPDR has now made it much more stringent for all businesses no matter the size of the company, thus helping protect everyone more.
Who needs to comply with GDPR?
In short, any company that operates within the E.U. which handles and stores personal information will need to follow to the new rules and it dosnt matter if you are a small tiny business or a blue chip corporation.
What happens if I don’t become compliant?
The penalties for not complying to GDPR will be very severe. Violation can result in a penalty of 4% of your company’s annual turnover or a fine of 20 million euros (depending on whichever’s highest). Ouch.
When does the GDPR take effect?
GDPR starts on the 25th May of 2018,
What about the U.K. leaving the E.U.?
Although the U.K. is leaving the EU the GDPR regulation is already in place and will still apply to the U.K. and its residents long after Brexit.
What do you need!
There are many different things that your business needs to do in order to become fully compliant and not just on your website. As we are not in a position to offer legal advice or comment on how other aspects of GPRD should be implemented into your business we can however help with the digital side of this. Below are a few of the things that your website and marketing will now need to include.
Privacy Policy – A privacy policy is a document on your site that states data usage and disclosure and management of a visitor’s information. We can provide a privacy policy based on your website and what kind of information you are storing or collecting. You should also include a cookie policy and warning notice, which appears as soon as someone clicks on the site.
SSL Certificates – An SSL certificate is most commonly recognised by the padlock symbol you see at the beginning of the URL this means that the site has an SSL certificate and has a safe secure connection. We can provide an SSL Certificate to any site but the requirements to install vary according to how your website has been developed.
Email campaign management – This is so that you are able to schedule and manage emails and email campaigns as well as keeping track of who is opening and engaging with your content, a secure database and an unsubscribe feature is key to keep in line with GDPR.
Opt-in email marketing – This is to ensure that anyone visiting your site is asked permission to opt for any email marketing or other services you may offer. It is important that this is obvious to visitors as it is part of the new regulations. We can provide our services to screen your site for anything that may require an opt-in option to be available; this needs to be agreed to by the visitor and not as an opt-out option.
Customer database – These sites can only be accessed by secure login and the SSL certificate protects the data the site is collecting.
Make It Easy To Remove Data If Requested – It needs to be as easy to withdraw permissions, as it was to grant them.
Captcha Feature – A captcha is a security feature that is helpful to websites; this prevents businesses from receiving spam or automated data. Adding a captcha also helps to keep your website more secure, as hackers can use forms on your websites to breach your websites private data.
Website and Plugin Security Vulnerabilities – Is your site and CMS secure? Out of date CMS packages and plugins, know Vulnerable scripts and extensions, hosting and server weak points. We offer one off updates or even better still one of our monthly support plans.
We are currently in the process of contacting all of our clients individually but if you do wish to know more or wish to book in a full GPDR audit with us please do get in touch. Contact us on 01772 687218 for a FREE evaluation of your website and marketing activities or to book in a full GPDR update of your existing website.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
