How To Prepare For GDPR If You're Self Employed

I n May 2018, new GDPR regulations will be introduced to businesses and self-employed individuals. The GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations) are a set of rules companies must follow to ensure they adhere to the legal requirements. If you’re self-employed then you’ll need to take responsibility for the data you hold. It’s important to know exactly what the GDPR overhaul involves, and how to prepare for the change. Perform A Data Audit If you have data on external hard drives, USB, files and folders, servers, emails, databases, paper documents and your smartphone, then it’s essential you undertake an audit. By doing this you’ll be able to address the data you collect, why you need to store data and who is able to access the data. By looking at your data, you’ll be able to evaluate your current security methods and see if their effective. The best way to keep track of your audit is to use a spreadsheet, detailing which data you hold and actions that need to be taken. Helpful Information Adhering to the GDPR regulations doesn’t need to be complicated. If you already have data protection procedures in place then it’s likely you won’t need to make many changes. Although the new regulations apply to most, there are some exceptions. Use this assessment tool to check whether you need to make the changes.