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What is General Data Protection Regulation? Here's a brief breakdown
Monday 21st May 2018 | Jake
After multiple delays and a seven-year wait, GDPR was finally passed into law on the 25th of May. The regulation will see changes in tech, advertising, medicine and banking among other things.
The law is designed to strengthen individual rights, such as the power to demand companies reveal or delete what data they have on you. It will also see regulators working closer together in an attempt to improve law enforcement ability, while the maximum fine that regulators can dish out has increased to £17.5m.
You may have noticed apps such as Facebook and Whatsapp pleading with you to read and consent to updated terms, many of which are created to comply with GDPR, as the new regulation is mostly concerned with companies that deal heavily in consumer data.
Brexit will have no effect on Britain’s adoption of the regulation, the government has continuously voiced its support for GDPR. Although an EU law, many companies based outside of the EU will adopt GDPR in order to trade freely in an important market.
It remains to be seen how big an impact GDPR will have on data-hungry tech giants such as Facebook and Google, and some have argued it will only consolidate their power as new startups struggle to adapt, but the increased control on personal data for the individual is welcome, as is the hefty fine handed out to disobedient companies.
