Why the General Data Protection Regulation is Important and Who it Affects

As you may have heard by now, Google is making important changes to their privacy policies and there are requirements that your business may need to meet in order to be compliant with those new policies.

Background

The GDPR or General Data Protection Regulation is a new legal framework under the European Union which is aimed at strengthening the rights of EU Citizens regarding their personal data and privacy online as well as helping to unify the data protection laws across Europe at large.

Who is Affected?

The GDPR affects both businesses in Europe and US-based businesses alike. If you meet any of the following criteria, it’s likely that your website or app falls under the GDPR and that you need to make changes to your Google Analytics and tracking to be compliant:

• If any of your customers are based in Europe
• If your website receives traffic from anyone in Europe
• If your website or apps speak directly to or markets to European citizens
• If you’re an e-commerce retailer and accept any form of European currency on your website
• If you’re an e-commerce retailer and you accept purchases/ orders from users in Europe
• If you advertise or market your products or services to European Citizens

If you’re unclear or unsure, it’s probably best to make changes anyway just so you are safe.

What Changes do I Need to Make?

There is no clear bullet point list on making sure your business is compliant and ultimately much of the legislation and legal framework that is being put forth will be subject to interpretation by courts. It is a case-by-case basis and is open to interpretation. It is wise to consider reassessing your privacy policy on your website as well as how you are collecting/ tracking information on your website.

What are the Next Steps I Should Take?

• Determine if your business is at risk

• Consider consulting your legal counsel on any steps you may need to take. It’s possible that you will need to update the privacy policy on your website but also that you will need to make changes to how your website/ business collects information.

Want to Discuss Further?

If Bytes.co can assist you in any way with cleaning up your website, data collection methods and/or your Google Analytics configurations to make sure you are compliant, please give us a call at 802.448.4001.