DP2018: Putting the GDPR into perspective - a proportionate view

Big data breaches prompt the general public to pay more heed to data.

Almost quotidian media coverage of Facebook and Google’s data use has created a national conversation that merits our interest, but not our overreaction, argued New UK’s Robert Streeter.

Fueling the GDPR hype

Fines.

Big fines.

There are eye-catching, headline-grabbing qualities to the GDPR that create debate, Robert told delegates.

And this is powered, without doubt, by the ICO’s ability to pursue punishment of up to 4% of global turnover, Robert told our attendees.

Don’t focus on the F-word

Keep a bigger picture-view that isn’t just fine-focused.

Instead recall how the regulator can help you.

Marketers must remember that the ICO is here not just to brandish the big stick, but to ensure that UK marketing can thrive under the GDPR.

But as data consciousness grows amongst consumers, Robert continued, subject access requests will also spike – but then tail off.

It will be the job of good customer service and proactive brand stewardship to help you avoid subject access requests becoming a wider issue for your business, he concluded.

Data as liability. Data as asset.

Data is now in the boardroom, Robert argued.

Why?

Because people are seeing its value. There has been something of an epiphany around data. It is a “fundamental asset”, now, where once it was spoken of as a liability, one for the backrooms of business rather than the front and centre.

GDPR has rebranded the value of data, Robert continued. But to thrive under the GDPR will mean marketers grasping the huge potential of the Accountability principle.

This fundamental underpinning of the GDPR places responsibility for good data governance at an organisational-wide level – not just the individual.

And marketers who thrive under the Accountability principle will be those who pay adherence to established codes of practice – or those who establish new ones. For guidance Robert referenced our own DMA Code as a model, and he encouraged our delegates to build robust processes that show how you capture and keep the information you retain.

But he concluded: there will be breaches – think right and data issues – because we all make mistakes: “If you’re not making them, you’re not marketing”.

Keep on top, be transparent and honest, and value your consumer throughout.

Click here for more Responsible Marketing and GDPR resources from the DMA