While the future of data collection seems blurred, one thing that is certain is that the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) law is coming into effect faster than we realize. On 25 May, 2018, organizations holding and processing EU residents’ personal data, regardless of their geographic location, will be mandated to comply with GDPR requirements. Similar to the government action to implement regulations to protect people on the Internet, brands, and agencies are now implementing regulations to protect privacy by requiring companies to be transparent.

Global businesses are modifying their privacy policies and applying consent practices to ensure that all data collection is fully GDPR-compliant.

Being transparent with consumer data provides consumers with rights, such as owning their personal information and accessing what is being collected and used by companies and why.

Also Read: How the GDPR Affects American Retailers like Whole Foods and Amazon, and What Businesses Can do to Mitigate Their Risk

GDPR Makes Consumer Consent Essential

In light of recent events around Facebook and the security of data, GDPR regulations will help prevent future occurrences because it allows consumers to have more transparency as well as provide consent.

With GDPR in place, if a brand is non-compliant, they will be fined up to €20 million or 4% of global revenues – whichever figure is greater. Or even worse, brands who don’t comply will lose their consumers’ trust and loyalty. Privacy laws have been derived to protect people’s rights to govern their own personal data.

In the mobile age, most brands extend their services through mobile applications which collect user insights. It’s essential for brands with mobile apps to ensure that consumers understand what’s being collected and are giving consent. Having transparency regulations will ultimately protect brands with apps and allow them to effectively target their consumers through mobile marketing.

Also Read: GDPR Compliance Isn’t the End of the World for Your B2B Marketing

Privacy laws are important for brands

As a data company, we are committed to following these privacy laws and want to ensure that all of the audiences being shared with advertisers have been ethically sourced and securely targeted. The advent of privacy laws is important for brands to give users the option to opt in or out of data collection.

For example, in mobile software development kits (SDK) app developers collect data to understand their users, however, if the consumer declines, they must still have full access to the application. In this case, brands have to give people a choice and not provide ramifications for not opting-in; this forces users to share their data which goes against the GDPR laws.

With the effective date approaching, it is in the best interest of all brands and agencies who collect data from online or mobile services to incorporate the GDPR language and review their data handling practice to take the stance of compliance, regardless of territory, and to prepare them for GDPR in the US. Ultimately, companies could risk the chance of being affected by fines, missing the mark when targeting audiences, improving organizational effectiveness and reducing the chance of fraud and improving customer experiences and loyalty.

Also Read: What Does GDPR Mean For Martech?