The GDPR was rolled out last year and every company in the European Union was affected in some way or the other. This does not exclude the companies which are doing business with other companies based in the EU. Ever since GDPR has been launched, companies are scrambling around, trying to ensure they comply well with the policies of the GDPR.
But when it comes to ID verification, the GDPR has proved to be a game changer for everyone. There is a lot of information being circulated around how organizations are managing personal information. This becomes highly necessary for companies which need identity verification and rely heavily on digital KYC.
Since the GDPR imposes heavy fines and strict actions, corporates need to stay updated on the GDPR guidelines along with the ways and means of toeing the line.
What do the GDPR Regulations cover?
No one can overlook GDPR’s booming entry, which has all organizations wondering what exactly is being covered by the GDPR Regulations. Keeping the user data’s protection as the crux, the regulations have made it a point to enhance security and highlight its importance to the world.
In order to keep the data safe, a business must take appropriate measures to ensure the data is handled securely. This needs to be followed with a safe storage facility for housing this data. This is not all; the customer should have the end rights to access, monitor, control, and even delete their data, if it comes to that. Such is the power GDPR gives to the end customers.
Keeping these thoughts in mind, GDPR encourages businesses and organizations alike to maintain the information in a manner, which can’t be traced back to the user. Alternatively, the information should be broken and kept in different locations; however, the information should be sliced together in such a manner such that it can be joined again, if needed. Another viable option for maintaining data privacy is that it should be coded and encrypted. This way, the data can’t be accessed without the proper data keys to decrypt the information. In lieu of these steps, organizations often hire a DPO (Data protection officer) who is certified in data handling and offering the appropriate protectionexpertise.
All data handling steps don’t require prior permissions from the consumers. Some data pertaining to cyber security, national security, employee data, etc. can still be accessed to a certain limit, without consent from the end users. Eventually, the whole idea behind GDPR boils down to the protection of user data. All customer data should be collected using specific, transparent and concise protocols. No part of the data should be gathered without the knowledge or consent of the end users. Failure to request consent can end up in heavy fines for the organization.
Why is ID verification important?
The virtual world has become the most widely used platform for reaching out to customers and conducting business. In this virtual world, most businesses are unable to see their customers physically. This brings forth the value of identity verification, which makes it an imperative step for organizations at alllevels of customer dealing.
Since there is no physical presence of the consumer, it becomes extremely difficult for organizations to validate their customers. ID theft, cyber criminals and other miscreants can often impersonate real customers and use other’s identities to conduct fraud and other illegal activities. Keeping this purpose in mind, companies conduct details KYC (Know Your Customer) procedures to enhance ID checks and validate the customers. Banks and other institutions which provide their services online can effectively analyse their customers details during account opening, financial transactions, and even while paying taxes and mortgages. Other companies which provide services to customers through online channels are also quickly joining the bandwagon, to enable better customer verification facilities through the use of various ID checks.
How does ID verification relate to the concept of GDPR?
While this question is extremely pertinent, the idea is to understand how the process of ID verification relates to the concept of GDPR. Through the implementation of the GDPR policies around KYC, the organizations will be required to inform their customers how their data would be used, stored, till when it will be stored etc. For example, if the identity number of an individual has been captured through the KYC process, how will this ID number be used, how will it be stored and till when will it remain with the organization.
GDPR understands the need for data privacy and highly applauds the use of KYC and Id verification to procure this data for further use. The period of retention needs to be short, thereby ensuring the data is kept only till the time it is being used for analysis. Otherwise, the user can request to get his/her data deleted.
