Protect personal data before it is too late

Are your members fully prepared and operationally ready for the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)? With the new GDPR setting the minimum standard for the use of customer data by organisations, privacy by design has inevitably become a leading principle of data management. The GDPR was adopted in April 2016 and will come into full effect in May 2018.

Whether your organisation or members are located within or outside of the EU, you are very likely to be affected by the GDPR and will need to take appropriate action or risk heavy fines.

Everyone has the right to protection of personal data
Under EU law, personal data can only be obtained legally under strict conditions for a legitimate purpose. Furthermore, persons or organisations that collect and manage personal information must protect it from misuse and must respect certain rights of the data owners as guaranteed under EU law.

Every day within the EU, businesses, public authorities and individuals transfer vast amounts of personal data across borders. Conflicting data protection rules in different countries would disrupt international exchanges. Individuals might also be unwilling to transfer personal data abroad if they were uncertain about the level of protection in other countries. Therefore, common EU rules have been established to ensure that personal data is given a high standard of protection everywhere in the EU. People have the right to complain and obtain redress if their data is misused anywhere within the EU.

The EU’s Data Protection Directive also foresees specific rules for the transfer of personal data outside of the EU to ensure the best possible protection of data when it is transferred abroad.

The ADDE and its legal representative in Brussels in Belgium, the contrast law firm, is taking this up for you and we will inform you in more detail in the coming weeks and months.

Your president,
Dominique Deschietere

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