Short answer: The GDPR is an EU regulation designed to protect personal data. For businesses, this means customer data must be processed lawfully, fairly, and transparently. This includes having a valid legal basis for processing, informing customers about how their data is handled, and protecting it against unauthorised access.
GDPR, customer data and your company
How much influence does GDPR have on the way you as a company process customer data? The answer will depend on your company and how you use the customer’s data. For a company that has good practices for processing personal data – including customer data – GDPR can actually be an opportunity to excel. The blog here covers how customers are protected by GDPR, how a company uses customer data and finally you will be presented with a list of best practices for processing customer data in accordance with GDPR.
Did you know that rapid response to data breaches can minimise long-term damages and costs associated with customer churn and lost trust?
- www.ponemon.org
What is customer data used for?
Customer data is used for a number of purposes, and it depends on one’s company’s specific needs and industry. Here are some common uses of customer data:
- Improving the customer experience: Companies can analyse customer data to understand their customers’ behavior, preferences and needs. This insight can be used to customise products or services, provide better customer service and create a more personalised customer experience.
- Marketing: Customer data is used to target marketing campaigns more precisely. By knowing customers’ interests and buying habits, companies can tailor their messages and advertising to appeal more effectively to the target group.
- Product development: Companies can use customer data to identify new trends and demand patterns. This can inform the product development process and help create products that better meet customer needs.
- Customer retention: By analysing customer data, companies can identify potential risks of customer churn and take action to improve customer loyalty. Personal follow-up and tailored offers can help to retain customers.
- Business decisions: Managers can draw on customer data to make informed decisions about business strategy, resource allocation and operations. Data can provide insight into market trends and the competitive situation.
- Streamlining operations: Companies can use data to optimise internal processes, improve inventory management, and streamline logistics based on knowledge of the customer’s purchasing behavior.
- Compliance and security: Secure handling of customer data is essential to comply with data protection legislation such as GDPR. Companies must ensure that they store and process customer data in a secure and legal manner.
Stop the GDPR monster before it gets its hold of your personal data
Protection of customer data according to GDPR
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) protects the data and privacy of people who are in the European Union and the European Economic Area. So this includes:
- EU citizens who live in the EU
- EU citizens who live abroad
- Foreign residents in the EU
- Visitors in the EU
This gives GDPR a broad scope. If your services or website is available to any of the groups above, or you market to them, you should comply with GDPR. Further, it’s important to remember that many other countries have now created their own data protection laws. Many of these are closely modeled on GDPRs with a similarly broad scope. Therefore, key rules and best practices for handling customer data in GDPR may apply worldwide.
Get consent before asking for a customer's data
To start with, GDPR requires you to have a legal basis for collecting personal data. Getting consent is one of the most common and straightforward ways to be sure you have that legal basis. Even if you get consent verbally, make sure you document it.
Your consent forms should be clear and easy to understand. They should state the reasons why you are asking for personal data. They should also mention what you will or will not do with the data, and include a link to your privacy policy. If you share or sell data, you should usually get specific consent to do so.
Minimise the customer data you collect
The GDPR principle of data minimisation affects how much data you should collect from customers. It states that you should only collect and process the minimum amount of customer data needed for your stated purpose. This principle aims to limit the exposure of people’s personal information and risks to their privacy. Inventory your data regularly to make sure you aren’t keeping data you don’t need.
Keep customer data safe
GDPR requires you to implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect customer data. technical and organisational measures to protect customer data from unauthorised access, loss, destruction, or alteration.
Use strong passwords, encryption, and access controls. Perform regular data backups. Educate your employees about how to protect their devices and the data on them. Don’t forget to protect paper copies and notes with people’s personal information on them.
Know your customers' GDPR data rights
GDPR gives your customers more rights over their personal data. You should be familiar with these rights and disclose them to your customers in your privacy policy.
Let your customers know who to complain to
GDPR allows each EU member state to establish its own supervisory authority. Usually, these authorities are called data protection agencies. Your local data protection agency is responsible for enforcing and overseeing GDPR compliance. As such, they have the power to investigate breaches, issue fines, and provide guidance about data protection.
Find out who your local data protection agency is and provide their contact info to your customers. This lets your customers know you take responsibility for protecting their privacy and their data.
Do this if your customer data is affected by a breach
If your company were to experience an incident that poses a risk to the rights and freedoms of your customers, you must report it. Read more about it here.
Need help managing personal data?
In our newsletter you get tips and tricks for dealing with privacy management from our founder Sebastian Allerelli.
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When others process customer data for you
If you use any third-party service providers to process customer data for you, GDPR requires you to draft a Data Processing Agreement (DPA). Basically, this is a contract that outlines the responsibilities and obligations of each party to ensure GDPR compliance.
GDPR rules for sending customer data abroad
The GDPR has special requirements for the transfer of customer data outside the EU (cross-border transfers). Before you send customer data to overseas partners, you must first consider whether they really need this data to do their jobs. If you need to send customer data to another country, we recommend that you do the following to ensure that the transfer meets GDPR requirements:
- Check whether the country has a decision on an agreement with the EU. If so, you can treat it as an EU transfer
- Only transfer to companies with binding corporate rules (BCRs)
- Get the data importer to make a binding commitment to apply safeguards that protect data
- Get express consent from the customer to share their data abroad
FAQ about GDPR and Customer Data
1. What is personal data?
Personal data refers to any information that can identify an individual, such as their name, email address, phone number, or IP address.
2. What is a legal basis for processing?
A legal basis is the lawful reason for processing personal data. This could be the individual’s consent, the need to fulfil a contract, or compliance with a legal obligation.
3. What are the consequences of non-compliance with GDPR?
Failure to comply with GDPR can result in fines, legal penalties, and significant reputational damage to the business.
4. How can we ensure GDPR compliance?
By mapping your data processing activities, implementing appropriate security measures, training staff, and regularly reviewing and updating your data protection policies.
A smart way to keep track of your customers' data
As a business, you are responsible under GDPR for the customer data you collect. This requires a well-crafted privacy policy and the discipline to follow it in practice. That can quickly become overwhelming and time-consuming. By using the right tools, you can make the task far easier — both for yourselves and for your employees.
At Safe Online, we offer a GDPR Risk Assessment that helps you locate and understand the customer data stored across your systems. The assessment identifies personal information in files, emails and documents, and gives you a clear overview of where your biggest risks are. This forms the foundation for working with customer data in a structured, secure and compliant way.
Learn more
Sebastian Allerelli
Founder & COO at Safe Online
Sebastian is the co-founder and COO of Safe Online, where he focuses on automating processes and developing innovative solutions within data protection and compliance. With a background from Copenhagen Business Academy and experience within identity and access management, he has a keen understanding of GDPR and data security. As a writer on Safe Online's Knowledge Hub, Sebastian shares his expertise through practical advice and in-depth analysis that help companies navigate the complex GDPR landscape. His posts combine technical insight with business understanding and provide concrete solutions for effective compliance.
