PossibleNOW Survey Shows Many Companies Have Increased Consent Collection, Yet Lack Understanding of Regulations that Govern Consent

PossibleNOW, the leading provider of enterprise consent and preference management solutions, announced the results of its latest survey, showing a +26% increase in businesses utilizing consent collection from 2018 to 2019. Last year, just 38% of companies reported collecting consumer consent. Another 31% reported they weren’t sure if they were collecting this information.

This year, 64% reported actively collecting consumer consent, while 28% remained unsure.  Consent management is of growing importance as it provides a company the ability to continue their marketing efforts toward their customers in an environment of increasing regulatory laws such as GDPR and CCPA. 

When asked about GDPR compliance, 24% of respondents reported compliance in 2018.  When respondents were asked the same question in 2019, only an additional 3% reported they were compliant.   

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Companies were further asked which GDPR requirements they found most challenging. Forty-Four percent of respondents said that “right to access” laws such as providing customers a copy of their personal data and the purpose for processing that data was most challenging.  Another 33.3% reported that consent management such as capturing, storing and distributing consent across the company created confusion. While companies report their consent collection has increased, confusion around management of this data also increased- showing a need for an enterprise-wide consent and preference management solution or approach.

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“Considering that GDPR is already enacted, and data privacy legislation such as the CCPA is increasing in the United States, it’s concerning – although not surprising – that there remains confusion around issues of regulatory compliance,” said Jeff Jarvis, SVP Strategy and Consulting at PossibleNOW. “An increase in companies collecting customer consent is a positive step in building trust and maintaining long-term customer loyalty, however companies must be aware of potential violations, and able to quickly adapt to ongoing legislation.”

As the era of increased concern regarding privacy and data among consumers continues, and government regulations greatly narrow the lawful use of such data, this survey shows that awareness and confusion within corporations must be addressed to mitigate risks.

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