Massive amounts of data are constantly being collected, tracked, and used in the digital era. Businesses that possess such personally identifiable information (PII) are often not concerned about it unless a data breach occurs. Malevolent hackers can access an individual’s complete identity.
Owing to such data risks, it is now crucial for all businesses, regardless of size, to ensure the security of personally identifiable information (PII). This is where the GDPR compliance standard comes into play. The primary objective of the GDPR security framework is to ensure that your current systems are updated and any new ones your data infrastructure requires are put into place to guarantee the fair handling and preservation of the user data you manage.
However, following a piece of data from the moment of collection to its ultimate erasure is a prerequisite for accurately adhering to the GDPR guidelines. You need a comprehensive overview of your data’s lifespan to ensure that whatever security measures you put in place will be adequate.
This is why you need to know about GDPR data mapping. Data mapping is not only a necessary starting point for achieving the GDPR’s overarching objectives but is also expressly required by several of the regulation’s clauses. This means that to be by the law, you must lawfully undertake data mapping regularly. But what is data mapping in its essence? What are its benefits? How often should you map your data?
If you are trying to adhere to the GDPR compliance standard, and these questions about GDPR data mapping are overwhelming you, we understand. This is why we at Akitra have curated this blog specially for you! This article will answer the five most frequently asked questions about GDPR data mapping.
But first, let’s understand what GDPR data mapping is.
GDPR Data Mapping: A Brief Overview
Data mapping is one of the foundational processes in the GDPR compliance journey. It is a process that helps you better understand how and why your company uses personal data.
A data map provides you with information, such as what personal data you gather, why you collect it, whether you need it, and how it is transferred from your firm to third parties.
You can maintain better control over your data protection and privacy procedures by using data mapping to assist you in keeping current records and generating visual dataflows. In essence, making a data map will provide you with a clear understanding of how your company gathers, uses, and distributes personal information, enabling you to lower risk, operate more efficiently, and adhere to GDPR guidelines more effectively.
Now that you have a comprehensive overview of what data mapping for GDPR compliance entails let’s dive into the five most frequently asked questions about GDPR data mapping.
Five Most Frequently-Asked Questions About GDPR Data Mapping
Here are the five most frequently-asked questions about GDPR data mapping:
- What are the Key Challenges in GDPR Data Mapping?
Data mapping presents a number of difficulties for organisations to deal with:
- Complexity and Fragmentation: Organizations frequently have complex data ecosystems that consist of siloed systems and databases. This can make identifying and mapping the many data flows across these networked systems difficult, particularly when the data is dispersed among several departments or business units.
The process is made more difficult by the absence of centralized data management and documentation, which makes it challenging to get a comprehensive picture of the actions involved in processing personal data.
- Third-Party Involvement: Many businesses depend on outside partners, suppliers, or service providers who handle personal data processing for them. Data flows involving these third parties might be difficult for organizations to map because of the need for more visibility and control over these parties’ data handling practices.
The data mapping process is further complicated by the need to ensure compliance and comprehend the ramifications of exchanging data with third parties.
- Changing Data Ecosystems and Technical Restrictions: Businesses constantly implement new applications, systems, and data processing operations. Maintaining current data mapping and considering changes in the data climate might be difficult, especially when working with outdated systems or incompatible data formats.
Technical constraints can also make data mapping more difficult and time-consuming, making it difficult to trace data accurately flows and comprehend the relationships between various data pieces.
Proactive measures are needed to address these issues, such as implementing strong data governance procedures, encouraging stakeholder participation, and utilizing technological tools that make data mapping and documenting easier.
- How Often Should I Update My GDPR Data Map?
Several criteria, such as your organization’s size, the complexity of your data ecosystem, and the rate of change in your data processing operations, will determine how often you update your GDPR data map.
It is generally advised to evaluate and update your data map if major changes could affect data flows or data processing operations at least once a year. Your company’s data map must be current and include all relevant tools, databases, and systems to ensure compliance. Therefore, it is crucial to implement a process that provides regular updates.
- Do I Need To Think About Mapping My GDPR Data as a Small Business?
Thinking about GDPR data mapping is crucial, even for small businesses. Regardless of the business’s location, all organizations processing personal data of individuals inside the European Union (EU) are subject to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
A crucial component of GDPR compliance is data mapping, which allows you to evaluate and control related risks while also assisting you in understanding how personal data moves within your company. While your company’s size may affect the scope and complexity of data mapping, adopting a proactive approach can help you improve your data security procedures, establish trust with your clients, and prove that you comply with GDPR.
- What are the Elements of a GDPR Data Map?
The essential elements of a GDPR data map are as follows:
- permits companies to manage, classify, arrange, and structure data for operational requirements;
- facilitates efficient documentation of data processing operations;
- increases the effectiveness of data management and protection by enabling robust data flow tracking;
- makes it possible for businesses to locate and access relevant data when needed; and,
- provides stronger security for data prone to increased risks.
These elements ensure transparency and accountability and enable organizations to effectively fulfill GDPR’s data protection principles and requirements.
- What are the Key Benefits of GDPR Data Mapping?
Data mapping helps you determine what personal data you process, which is why it is an essential component of GDPR compliance; here are some additional benefits of this process:
- Complying with Data Protection Principles: You must abide by the GDPR’s data protection standards when you process personal data. You must thoroughly comprehend your data processing operations to apply the principles.
For instance, the “data minimization” concept of the GDPR mandates that personal data be collected only for a designated purpose. Using a data map, you can find and address any personal information you are collecting, storing, or sharing unnecessarily.
- Identifying a Legal Basis: Under the GDPR, every process of processing personal data needs a “legal basis.” The GDPR’s Articles 6 and 9 list the legal justifications for “special category” (sensitive) data. One of the most frequent GDPR infractions is failing to identify a suitable legal basis.
Data mapping can help you determine whether you have a legitimate reason to process personal data and identify all the data you control.
- Managing Privacy and Security Risks: With a comprehensive understanding of the methods and purposes behind processing personal data, it is possible to protect it effectively. You may lower the risk of data breaches and adopt the necessary precautions with good data visibility.
Using a data map makes it easier to implement risk-based controls depending on the resources available to your business, the processing environment, and the sensitivity of the data under your control.
- Producing Article 30 Reports: Article 30 of the GDPR is one of the most important provisions. Organizations must regularly provide Report of Processing Activity (ROPA) reports detailing their data collection and usage in accordance with this paragraph.
Data maps make it simple to submit ROPA reports on demand, especially since you already gathered all the necessary information in one location.
- Facilitating the Rights of Data Subjects: Under the GDPR, data subjects or persons have the right to ask you to view, update, or remove their personal information. You have a maximum of one month to answer. Inadequate management of requests for data subject rights is one of the main causes of regulatory complaints.
You can better control and manage your personal data by using data mapping. This makes it possible to respond to demands for data subject rights quickly and effectively, satisfying your clients and averting regulatory objections.
- Understanding Data at the Deepest Level: Data is the lifeblood of modern businesses. Once you have built an accurate data map, you will thoroughly understand exactly what you know, what you don’t know, and what you need to learn.
You can then use this knowledge to create better and safer data processes for internal and external stakeholders.
GDPR Compliance Readiness with Akitra!
Establishing trust is a crucial competitive differentiator when courting new SaaS businesses in today’s era of data breaches and compromised privacy. Customers and partners want assurances that their organizations are doing everything possible to prevent disclosing sensitive data and putting them at risk, and compliance certification fills that need.
Akitra offers an industry-leading, AI-powered Compliance Automation platform for SaaS companies. With its expertise in technology solutions and compliance, Akitra is well-positioned to assist companies in navigating the complexities of these frameworks and can provide invaluable guidance in implementing the necessary frameworks and processes.
Using automated evidence collection and continuous monitoring, together with a full suite of customizable policies and controls as a compliance foundation, our compliance automation platform and services help our customers become compliance-ready for NIST’s 800-218 Secure Software Development Framework and other security standards, such as SOC 1, SOC 2, HIPAA, GDPR, PCI DSS, ISO 27001, ISO 27701, ISO 27017, ISO 27018, ISO 9001, ISO 13485, NIST CSF, NIST 800-53, NIST 800-171, FedRAMP, CCPA, CMMC, SOX ITGC, and more such as CIS AWS Foundations Benchmark, Australian ISM and Essential Eight etc. In addition, companies can use Akitra’s Risk Management product for overall risk management using quantitative methodologies such as Factorial Analysis of Information Risks (FAIR) and qualitative methods, including NIST-based for your company, Vulnerability Assessment and Pen Testing services, Trust Center, and AI-based Automated Questionnaire Response product to streamline and expedite security questionnaire response processes, delivering huge cost savings. Our compliance and security experts also provide customized guidance to navigate the end-to-end compliance process confidently. Last but not least, we have also developed a resource hub called Akitra Academy which provides easy-to-learn short video courses on security, compliance, and related topics of immense significance for today’s fast-growing companies.
The benefits of our solution include enormous savings in time, human resources, and cost savings, including discounted audit fees with our audit firm partners. Customers can achieve compliance certification fast and cost-effectively, stay continuously compliant as they grow, and become certified under additional frameworks from our single compliance automation platform.
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