GDPR: The Big Picture and What You Simply Must Do

GDPR: The Big Picture and What You Simply Must Do

The General Data Protection Regulation has been in effect since May 2018, but many businesses still struggle with the basics. GDPR applies to any organization that processes personal data of individuals in the EU, regardless of where the organization itself is located. The regulation is comprehensive and detailed, but understanding the core principles and minimum requirements is achievable for any business willing to invest the effort.

The Core Principles

GDPR is built on seven fundamental principles that should guide all your data processing activities:

• Lawfulness, fairness, and transparency: You must have a valid legal basis for processing personal data and be transparent about how you use it. Common legal bases include consent, contractual necessity, and legitimate interest.
• Purpose limitation: Data must be collected for specified, explicit, and legitimate purposes, and not further processed in a manner incompatible with those purposes.
• Data minimization: Only collect the data you actually need for the stated purpose. Do not collect data "just in case" it might be useful later.
• Accuracy: Keep personal data accurate and up to date. Provide mechanisms for individuals to correct inaccurate data.
• Storage limitation: Do not keep personal data longer than necessary for the purpose it was collected. Define retention periods and enforce them.
• Integrity and confidentiality: Protect personal data with appropriate technical and organizational security measures.
• Accountability: You must be able to demonstrate compliance with all of the above principles. Documentation is not optional.

What You Must Do at a Minimum

Even if you do nothing else, these minimum steps will put you on a path toward compliance:

1. Start with a data mapping exercise to understand what personal data you collect, where it is stored, how it is used, who has access to it, and what legal basis applies to each processing activity.
2. Create a privacy policy that clearly explains your data practices in plain language. Make it accessible on your website and update it when your practices change.
3. Implement a consent management solution for your website that allows users to accept or reject non-essential cookies and tracking before those technologies are activated.
4. Establish a process for handling data subject requests, such as access requests (the right to know what data you hold), deletion requests (the right to be forgotten), and portability requests (the right to receive their data in a usable format).
5. Ensure your data processors (third-party tools and services that process personal data on your behalf) have appropriate data processing agreements in place.
6. Appoint someone responsible for data protection in your organization, whether that is a formal Data Protection Officer or a team member who owns the compliance program.

Common Pitfalls

Many organizations focus exclusively on their website's cookie banner while neglecting other critical areas. GDPR applies to all personal data processing, not just website tracking. This includes:

• Email marketing consent and list management practices. See also the Electronic Communications Act (LEK) for Swedish-specific requirements.
• Employee data handling, including recruitment data.
• Vendor and partner data management.
• Customer data stored in CRM systems and sales tools.
• Data shared with third parties through integrations and APIs.

GDPR compliance is not a one-time project. It requires ongoing attention and regular reviews of your data practices as your business evolves, new tools are adopted, and regulations are further clarified through enforcement actions and court rulings. Adopting privacy-compliant measurement practices is an important part of ongoing compliance. Build compliance into your regular business review processes rather than treating it as a separate, occasional activity.