September 30, 2016,  EU General Data Protection Regulation, Events, Henley Business School, News, Thought Leadership  No comments

If you’d like to watch the debate from the FT Cyber Security Summit Europe that took place on 21 September 2016, click here

September 17, 2016,  Banks, EU General Data Protection Regulation, Events  No comments

New entrants to the UK banking sector have just under two years to prepare for the enforcement of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Enforcement will commence on the GDPR Effective Date (25 May 2018).

The 2-year transition period is designed to allow organisations to adapt to the new requirements of the GDPR. Processing of customers’ personal data that’s already underway should be brought into conformity with the GDPR within this 2 year transition period.

Recital 171, GDPR provides:

(1)  Directive 95/46/EC should be repealed by this Regulation...

September 14, 2016,  data protection, DPO Programme, EU General Data Protection Regulation, European Commission, European Parliament, Events, Henley Business School, News, Thought Leadership  No comments

Debate: “The European Union’s new data protection rules will impose unnecessary burdens on businesses – Yes or No?”

Business leaders are worried that the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), scheduled to come into effect in early 2018, will seriously harm their commercial interests. It will force them to improve the privacy rights of EU citizens and report data breaches within three days, rules that will be difficult and costly to comply with. Penalties for non-compliance could be as high as 4% of global turnover. However, British businesses could be spared the hassle if Brexit means the UK does not implement the Regulation.

In what promises ...

June 15, 2016,  EU General Data Protection Regulation, News, Thought Leadership  No comments

New research shows that 7,000 large companies in the UK must train around 14 Data Protection Officers a day between now and May 2018 in order to comply with the GDPR irrespective of Brexit vote

Research conducted by GO DPO®, the strategic partner for the Henley Data Protection Officer (DPO) Programme, estimates that around 7,000 large companies (employing in excess of 250 employees) will need to recruit and train at least one DPO each over the next 24 months irrespective of whether or not the UK votes to leave the EU.

On the basis that there are a total of 496 working days (excludes public and Bank Holidays and all weekends) between now and when the EU General Data Protectio...

April 14, 2016,  EU General Data Protection Regulation, European Commission, European Parliament, News  No comments

In the last 15 minutes, the European Parliament adopted the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

In a news statement issued by the European Parliament at 1.12pm (European Time):

New EU data protection rules which aim to give citizens back control of their personal data and create a high, uniform level of data protection across the EU fit for the digital era was given their final approval by MEPs on Thursday. The reform also sets minimum standards on use of data for policing and judicial purposes.

Parliament’s vote ends more than four years of work on a complete overhaul of EU data protection rules.

The reform will replace the current data protection directive, dati...

April 7, 2016,  Essential Law for Marketers, EU General Data Protection Regulation, European Commission, European Parliament  No comments

The Council of Ministers has just published its FINAL TEXT of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and its statement for reasons for the biggest shake up in data protection and privacy for nearly two decades.

In an official communique, dated 4 April 2016, the General Secretariat of the Council said:

At its 3445th meeting on 12 February 2016, the Economic and Financial Affairs Council reached political agreement on the Council’s position at first reading on the (GDPR)...

February 3, 2016,  DPO Programme, EU General Data Protection Regulation, Events, Henley Business School, News  No comments

I’ve just returned this evening from delivering my ‘Game Changer’ presentation to around 50 delegates from across a wide range of public and private sectors attending the Learning Technologies Event at Olympia, London which runs through tomorrow and is free to attend.

January 8, 2016,  data protection, EU General Data Protection Regulation, Legal update, News  No comments

One of the biggest changes in data protection and privacy to usher in the New Year with a bang is publication of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) later this month. And it’s really important that all companies take the necessary steps to protect themselves from becoming liable for personal data breaches under this EU Regulation.

As reported extensively in this blog over the last 12 months, the GDPR will force all organisations to re-wire their thinking as well as their data protection policies and procedures for handling personal data under a fundamental change in European law.

Experience to date shows that effective training is the first line of defence and ...

December 16, 2015,  EU General Data Protection Regulation, News  No comments

It’s here: after years and years of debate, the negotiating parties to the trilogue are reported finally to have agreed the text of the European Union’s successor privacy legislation: the General Data Protection Regulation.

Jan Albrecht, the German MEP leading up the European Parliament’s negotiations on the GDPR, even tweeted this picture of the negotiators who struck today’s deal – somehow a fitting use of social media technology, given that the key driver behind this legislative change is to bring Europe’s aging data privacy rules up to date for the modern technological era.

This isn’t the formal end of the legislative process though – while the text of t...

December 15, 2015,  EU General Data Protection Regulation, News  No comments

Reuters reports this evening (Tuesday 15 December 2015) that the long awaited EU General Data Protection Regulation has reached agreement among the European Commission, European Parliament and Council of Ministers.

A second reading will now follow in the European Parliament and the publication of the GDPR now seems highly likely mid-January 2016.

Thereafter, transition arrangements will need to be in place across the whole of the EU so that Member States can adopt the new EU Regulation.