Data security is vital for every business

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The new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is set to take effect in May 2018 and affect every business in the UK that holds customer/sensitive data.

By Paul Castle, director, The N3bular Project.

This now gives a relatively short window in which you can get to grips with the new regulations and ensure that your IT security measures are compliant.

With fines of up to 4 per cent of annual (global) turnover, or €20m (whichever is the largest), this new regulation is not something to be ignored.

GDPR has been designed to improve the way companies hold, retain and protect their customer data, but the reality is that most businesses, currently, would not comply with many of these measures.

Most business owners don’t think they’re at risk and as a result are vulnerable to cyber attacks and data breaches. In 2016, it was reported that 52 per cent of British businesses were victims of cybercrime.

Something has to change to help businesses realise that cybercrime and security should be very high on their agenda.

The rapidly changing world of technology has created greater opportunities, but also greater challenges for businesses.

When you think about your company data, it’s accessible on multiple devices (sometimes an employee’s own device).

Data flows through the organisation via collaboration systems, business intelligence software and reporting tools.

The emergence of Cloud computing has blared the lines of where the traditional company IT network ends. All this modern technology helps you run your business - but what GDPR is forcing you to think about is how you need to secure your data. The good news is that with an IT security strategy and implementation of the right policies, procedures and solutions, you can be better prepared to satisfy your GDPR obligations.