The data protection act 2018 outlines important regulations that companies need to adhere to. This post will help you discover what these are.
The Data Protection Act 2018
The data protection act 2018 refers to the UK’s new data protection legislation, which came into effect on the 25th of May 2018. The act brings with it a series of changes that all businesses operating in the UK need to be aware of.
Then, the act is an evolution of the previous data protection act 1998. This new act revises and replaces the previous legislation, and replaces it with a more comprehensive set of regulations.
Moreover, the data protection act 2018 is a measure introduced by the UK government to protect users from misuse of their data. This legislation was introduced following extensive discussions between industry groups, consumers, and lawmakers in the UK. The purpose of this legislation is to ensure that individuals have control over their data. And that companies abide by certain rules when processing it.
What has changed? Numerous changes come with this legislation. One of the biggest changes is that it applies to all businesses that deal with personal information.
Companies that don’t deal with sensitive information. Such as credit card numbers or medical records aren’t affected by this act. But other businesses such as social media networks, search engines, and online advertisers are. This means that these companies need to ensure they are compliant with the act or they may face fines or even prosecution in some cases.
How is Personal Information Used?
Personal information is any information relating to an individual living in the UK (a person) which can be used to identify them directly or indirectly. This can include name, contact details, location information, and online identifiers such as cookies or IP addresses. Further, personal information can also include sensitive personal information. Such as medical records or information about race or political opinions.
Businesses collect this data directly from customers and other sources regularly for marketing purposes. But also for other reasons like customer service or fraud prevention purposes.
So, data protection officers have been appointed for most businesses. This uses personal data as part of its business model to ensure compliance with the law. This includes social media networks like Facebook and Twitter which provide services based on user-generated content. One they collect large amounts of user-generated personal data which they then use for advertising purposes etc.
Businesses can collect personal data in a variety of ways including through direct contact with users. For example, when you order a product online or call a company, they will ask you for your personal information.
As we mentioned earlier, they can also collect the data through indirect methods like cookies. For example, companies will use cookies to track customers’ behavior and activity which they then use to tailor their marketing efforts.
Conclusion
This regulation ensures that businesses have control over what happens with personal customer data in their systems. So, follow this act to ensure the protection within your company.