Image Courtesy of the cyberwatching.eu project

If you run an SME, then you will almost certainly know about the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and how it has been affecting the European business landscape in the last two and a half years. The purpose of the GDPR is to protect people's fundamental rights and freedoms, especially their right to personal data protection. 
If your organisation processes users' personal data, the GDPR requires the company to provide consumers with certain information, which can be found in the privacy notice. But how well does your company know how to write a privacy notice?

What is the Information Notice Tool?

The Information Notice Tool allows all types of organisations to approach the GDPR related issues pragmatically and efficiently. It provides a practical checklist that includes all the elements required for an Information Notice to be shown on the website.
Made up of a set of questions related to data processing by any type of company, it provides useful recommendations on how to comply with the GDPR rules. 
The objective is not only to improve best practices of SMEs but also to empower companies to benefit from the unique opportunities that may come from its correct management. The GDPR not only gives mere regulatory obligations that businesses need to follow, it also represents an opportunity for a company to reorganise and digitise.

Who can use the Information Notice Tool?

The Tool can be used by any SME operating in the European (and beyond) business environment.
There are still many firms that continue to manage in a purely formal way the fulfilment of the regulations, without assessing in practice whether and how the personal data processing affects the involved subjects, and if the principles of the regulations are actually observed.
Generally speaking, the GDPR is still often seen as an annoying bottleneck to business activities. This is especially felt in the European enterprise landscape, largely composed of SMEs, where there is often a lack of sensitivity to the importance of personal data protection.

What are the benefits and takeaways of the Information Notice Tool?

The Tool allows all users to download a report with information and recommendations in which are included practical steps to be followed, to change and improve their current privacy notice.
The Tool focuses mainly on Art. 13 and Art. 14 of the GDPR, in which are listed the items that must be included in an information notice dedicated to users and consumers.
It can also be seen as a set of useful information for companies and organizations to either improve their transparency towards consumers and avoid fines that may result from misconduct that is not in line with the GDPR requirements.
Those are the reasons why the Information Notice Tool can be a very useful instrument for any organization that needs to assess its position regarding the matters of data processing and data handling.

The Tool can be found here at https://bit.ly/2WSCKb4 (free of charge) and can be completed in about 15 minutes. It is a valid instrument to increase any company’s awareness and consciousness concerning any GDPR issue.

USE THE TOOL