After four years of preparation and debate the GDPR was finally approved by the EU Parliament on 14 April 2016. The enforcement date for the GDPR Legislation is Friday 25 May 2018 – at which time those organisations in non-compliance may face heavy fines.
The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) replaces the Data Protection Directive 95/46/EC and was designed to harmonise data privacy laws across Europe, to protect and empower all EU citizens data privacy and to reshape the way organisations across the region approach data privacy.
The ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office) have produced a guide to GDPR to help organisations prepare for the new regulations. The Guide to the GDPR explains the provisions of the GDPR to help organisations comply with its requirements. It is for those who have day-to-day responsibility for data protection.
This is a living document and the ICO are working to expand it in key areas. It includes links to relevant sections of the GDPR itself, to other ICO guidance and to guidance produced by the EU’s Article 29 Working Party. The Working Party includes representatives of the data protection authorities from each EU member state, and the ICO is the UK’s representative.
Alongside the Guide to the GDPR, they have produced a number of tools to help organisations to prepare for the GDPR, including “12 steps to take now” and “Getting ready for GDPR Checklist” for more information visit: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/
The ICO are also issuing a specific guidance for not-for-profit organisations, which aims to answer questions regularly raised by charities and voluntary organisations. You can access the information using the link below:
https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/charity/