Countdown to General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

GDPR4The GDPR will significantly change data protection law in Europe, strengthening the rights of individuals and increasing the obligations on organisations. The advancement in internet technology across various platforms has lead to a growth in consumer behaviour monitoring (with/without their consent) which in turn, has raised concerns and lead to this new Directive. The aim of the GDPR is to protect all European Union (EU) citizens from privacy and data breaches in an increasingly data-driven world that is vastly different from the time in which the 1995 directive was established.

The onus will be for businesses to be fully transparent about how they are using and safeguarding personal data. They will also have to demonstrate accountability for their data processing activities. The new legislation is designed to place responsibility and accountability on businesses and organisations that handle personally identifiable information, such as name, addresses, photos, bank details, etc. Arguably the biggest change to the legislation is the extended jurisdiction, as it applies to all organisations processing the personal data; therefore it also applies to non-EU companies that process personal data of EU residents.

To help prepare and inform businesses, the Local Enterprise Office Kilkenny in conjunction with Kilkenny Chamber of Commerce, CiphersTech EU and Business IT Solutions (BITS) will host a lunchtime seminar on Wednesday 18th October in the Ormonde Hotel, Kilkenny. This seminar will specifically focus on how businesses can prepare for the GDPR from the perspective of cyber security. Presenters on the day will include Laurence Conroy, General Manager of CipherTechs EU; Nic Alicandri, Chief business Officer (CBO) and co-owner of CipherTechs and Gavin Dixon, Managing Director of BITS South East Ltd.

The Irish Data Protection Commissioner, Helen Dixon has outlined that “Data protection laws exist to ensure fair play for everyone in how their identity and personal data is used by big corporations, governments and all sorts of organisations and businesses. She added “ It (GPDR)  will impact every type of company and organisation regardless of their size and require many of them to take significant action well before May 25th 2018”

Without doubt, the GDPR is a huge step towards ensuring businesses focus on information security and data protection - and this seminar aims to inform businesses about how to think about cybersecurity and the need to prepare for it.

To register for this free seminar taking place on Wednesday next 18th October in the Ormonde Hotel, Kilkenny, visit www.localenterprise.ie/kilkenny

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