GDPR: Turning the burden into an opportunity

The world of online data privacy has been active, lately.

If you’re in the European Union right now, you’ve already seen the “Please agree to our Privacy options” pop-ups on every website you open. Your inbox has also been clogged with opt-ins and with “Important – we’re updating our Privacy Policy” emails.

It’s already been a month since all organizations operating in the European Union have been required to comply with the GDPR. The General Data Privacy Regulation, for those who don’t know, is the European Union’s way of making sure companies are transparent with you. Under the new regulation, services are required to disclose what information they collect from users, how they store it and how they process it.

The GDPR covers any data that can be used to identify you as a person, even indirectly. “Personal data” in GDPR terms includes: location data, IP addresses, browser cookies and more.

While essentially, the GDPR might seem unneeded, it is an opportunity to evaluate the services you’re currently using.With cloud storage becoming increasingly popular for personal use, this necessary transparency might help you choose the actually secure cloud storage solution.

What is GDPR? Everything you need to know

Security standards

Under the GDPR, a lot of companies have taken time to re-evaluate their Privacy Policies and include how they handle your personal data. Cloud storage is no exception.

Cloud storage services, who take adequate security measures to protect your personal data from loss, alteration, or unauthorized processing, are the ones you should be looking for. The GDPR has outlined encryption as a good standard for data protection.

This is an opportunity to spend a few minutes and see what kind of data services actually collect and protect, what encryption standards are these companies using and what your Privacy Options are.

Privacy options

Consent lies at the heart of the GDPR. Chapter 3 of the regulation contains a list of your personal data privacy rights, as a user. This includes the right to receiving a notification of a breach, the right of full erasure of data, the ability to restrict the processing of your data and more.

How these preferences are managed and respected by your cloud storage app is another way to evaluate the service you’re using. In most cases, cloud storage and file sync apps are data controllers. They won’t process your files, but rather - your email address, IP address and other things alike. However, the ease with which you can manage your privacy options alone are that can differentiate one app from another.

Customer commitment

In the end, it all comes down to how committed your service is to your satisfaction. Recent studies have shown that 54% of customers have switched to competitors, due to bad customer experience.

Going the extra mile and introducing clear and transparent communication is crucial post-GDPR. Openness builds trust, which in turn increases customer satisfaction. Companies, which are proactive about protecting their users’ personal data,are the ones, who want to build long-term relations.

Stalina Zoir is marketing specialist, pCloud