GDPR Compliance Requirements for an Online Business Website

Do you want to know GDPR compliance requirements for an online business website?

The European Union introduced the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in May 2018. It changes how organizations handle personal data.

Any online business collecting or using EU residents’ personal information must follow these rules. GDPR protects user privacy and helps build trust between businesses and their customers.

As more businesses operate online and reach global audiences, understanding GDPR compliance is essential.

This article will cover the key elements of GDPR, explain what online businesses must do to comply, and provide practical tips for WordPress users on using tools like the WP Legal Pages plugin to stay compliant.

By understanding these points, you can better navigate GDPR and protect your business and customers in a data-driven world.

What is GDPR?

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a law about data privacy that started on May 25, 2018.

This law sets rules for how personal data is collected, processed, transferred, and stored.

It requires organizations to protect personal data securely. It also imposes fines on those who do not follow these rules.

Additionally, it gives people certain rights over their personal information.

As technology changes and data collection increases, data privacy has become significant.

When it was introduced, the GDPR was the most extensive data privacy law. It brought together different data protection laws across the European Union (EU).

The GDPR expanded existing rules to include non-EU organizations that handle personal data from people in the EU.

Any company or organization that offers products or services to people in the EU or tracks their activities must follow the GDPR, regardless of where it is located.

So, What is GDPR Compliance?

It is a regulation that will ensure an increase in transparency of data processing, set up clearer consent provisions, and provide users the right to request or remove their data, along with other data privacy measures. This post will talk about GDPR compliance in the US and Europe.

WP GDPR Compliance Checklist

To make your WordPress site GDPR compliant, follow these key steps:

Data Collection and Consent

• Clear Consent: Use simple opt-in boxes to get user consent for data collection. Clearly explain what users are agreeing to.
• Specific Consent: Let users choose what types of data they want to share.
• Record Consent: Keep a record of when users gave their consent and what they approved.

Data Minimization

• Review Data: Check if the data you collect is really necessary for your goals.
• Remove Unneeded Data: Set up a process to delete data that is no longer required.

Privacy Policy

• Update Your Policy: Make sure your privacy policy is current and easy to understand.
• Make It Easy to Find: Link to your privacy policy so users can access it easily, like in the footer or menu of your site.

User Rights

• Access to Data: Have a process in place for users to request their personal data.
• Fix Data: Allow users to correct any wrong or incomplete information.
• Delete Data: Enable users to ask for their data to be deleted, as the law requires.
• Data Transfer: Let users download their data in a common format that’s easy to use.
• Challenge Data Use: Allow users to disagree with certain data processing activities, like marketing.

Security Measures

• Use Encryption: Protect data during transfer and storage using encryption, especially for sensitive information.
• Choose a Secure Host: Select a reliable hosting provider that meets GDPR security standards.
• Regular Security Checks: Conduct regular security checks to identify and fix possible problems.
• Data Protection Assessment: Evaluate risks for high-risk data activities and take steps to reduce them.

Data Breach Preparedness

• Response Plan: Create a clear plan to manage data breaches, including how to notify users and recover from the incident.
• Notify of Breaches: Set procedures for informing data protection authorities and affected users in case of a breach.

Third-party Data Processors

• Review Contracts: Check your contracts with third-party data processors to ensure they follow GDPR rules.
• Data Processing Agreements: Clearly outline the roles and responsibilities of third parties regarding data in formal agreements.

Records of Processing Activities

• Keep Records: Maintain precise records of all your data processing activities, including what data you collect and why.
• Document Compliance Efforts: Keep records of your GDPR compliance activities, including policies and risk assessments.

In addition, frequent and systematic data monitoring is also required for compliance, especially when data processing is done on a large scale.

Personal Data Processing for Business Purpose

The GDPR regulates personal data processing by a company or a website when its processing activities relate to offering individuals products or services.

Keeping Data Processing Records

Keeping a record of data processing activities should be an ongoing process for the GDPR compliance. The personal data that companies process must reflect the current situation.  

Notifying for Personal Data Breaches

In case there is any breach of security that leads to the accidental or unlawful loss, disclosure, destruction, or alteration of data, the authorities must notify the breach to the Data Protection Authority not later than 72 hours when feasible.

Erasing Data

Individuals have the right to ask the controller to get their personal immediately. Several grounds apply for erasing data such as:

• the personal data is no longer required pertaining to the purposes for which it was collected;
• the individual withdraws consent on processing the data;
• the individual raises an objection to the processing;
• Unlawful processing of personal data; or

Penalties

There are financial penalties for non-compliance of data protection regulations by individuals or enterprises, depending on the nature of the violation. For an organization, the penalties are below:

• Up to €20 million or 4 percent of the annual worldwide revenue, whichever is higher.

GDPR Compliance Requirements for your Website

Organizations need to consider several factors to make their website GDPR compliant. Here are they:

Which Websites need to be GDPR Compliant?

A business website should chalk out a specific plan for collecting personal data, and how to use that data on lawful grounds.

Currently, having user consent is most common lawful ground. However, the rule for collecting and keeping the data has become stringent by the GDPR. There are specific rules for seeking consent, which varies depending on the nature of the information you are seeking. Sensitive personal data requires clear consent.

A website needs to take a decisive action to obtain consent. For example, if your website does not collect any personal data and does not use cookies, and it has no contact forms or newsletters, you need not to do anything for GDPR compliance.

Update Your Website’s Privacy Policy

You need to update your WordPress privacy policy by explicitly stating the purpose of collecting personal data. The policy should also state how long you intend to keep the data. The GDPR specifies that the data can only be kept for “as long as necessary,” and how individuals want to exercise their data rights.

The data rights are below:

• The Right to Access: An organization must allow individuals access to their personal data. For this, organizations need to provide a copy of an individual’s personal data.
• The Right to Rectify: Individuals can request to update or rectify their personal data that an organization is holding if it is inaccurate or incomplete.
• The Right to Data Erasure: In certain circumstances, individuals can request to remove their personal data. They can request verbally or by writing. This right also called “the right to be forgotten.”
• The Right to Restrict Data Processing: Individuals may also restrict the processing of data instead of erasing it.

Resort to Data Encryption

Considering the importance of data privacy and protection, websites need to have a strong data protection strategy in place. Incorporating an SSL certification is a basic requirement these days to protect the stored data on the server of a website.

Data Protection for Mobile Websites

Businesses are required to provide data protection for mobile websites and Apps as well. Data breaches are rampant in those platforms these days. Considering this, the GDPR stipulates that data collection rules must be integrated with mobile websites and App.

Change the Cookies of Your Website

The cookies of your website need to be GDPR compliant only if it collects and retains personal data. For example, cookies such as advertising, financial services, and surveys fall into this category.

There must be a valid reason to use cookies, and your website must specify it explicitly. If there is no authentic reason, your website simply needs to use cookies.

Implied Consent is Not Valid

To comply with the GDPR, users need to take affirmative action to confirm their consent. It means implied consent is not valid. That is why adding cookies to a websites’ landing pages with cookies hoping that visitors will not opt-out is not going to work.

The Cookie Law suggests that websites obtain visitor consent via a soft opt-in model, which says:

“This means giving an opportunity to act before cookies are set on the first visit to a site. If there is then a fair notice, continuing to browse can in most circumstances be valid consent via affirmative action. Although see above about a persistent opt-out route. This however may not be sufficient for sites that contain health related content, or other sites where the browsing history may reveal sensitive personal data about the visitor. Then it may require explicit consent, a higher bar to get over.”

The law further states that the statements like “By using this site, you accept cookies” are not compliant. If a website does not provide any genuine and free option, then it is not a valid consent. In addition, a choice of opting out should be available on the site.

Example:

The following screenshot shows cookie statement of the www.cookielaw.org.

Specific Consent is required for Different Cookies  

Websites that use various types of cookies for different data processing objectives need valid consent mechanisms for each objective. It means there have to be separate consents for tracking and analytics cookies.

Make sure all the Consent Forms on your website are unchecked by default so that users give consent to opt-in. Getting confirmation from visitors will keep your site compliant with the GDPR.

How to Comply Your WordPress Website with the GDPR Law

To follow GDPR privacy rules, website owners can use specific plugins. Two important plugins for WordPress are WP Legal Pages and WP Cookie Consent. These tools help businesses comply with data protection laws and maintain user transparency.

WP Legal Pages Plugin

WP Legal Pages allows website owners to create and manage important legal pages, such as disclaimers, terms and conditions, and privacy policies. The plugin offers ready-made content and customizable templates that are easy to adjust for a website’s needs. Businesses can use this plugin to ensure their sites meet GDPR requirements about data protection and have legal documents that inform visitors about how they handle data.

WP Cookie Consent

WP Cookie Consent helps website owners manage cookie consent according to GDPR. This plugin lets site administrators notify users about cookie usage through a consent banner or pop-up. Users can choose to accept or decline cookies, which ensures that no unnecessary cookies are placed on their devices without consent. WP Cookie Consent also offers customization options to match the website’s look and feel.

Using these plugins can create a clearer and compliant online presence. This helps build trust with visitors while meeting GDPR legal requirements.

FAQ

Conclusion

Understanding GDPR compliance is essential for any online business collecting or using EU citizens’ personal data.

This regulation protects user privacy and improves transparency between organizations and their customers.

Businesses can align their operations with legal requirements by learning the basics of GDPR, like data protection principles, the need for clear consent, and the importance of straightforward privacy policies.

Tools like the WP Legal Pages plugin can help WordPress users simplify the compliance process, making it easier to create necessary documents and manage user consent.

Focusing on data protection and transparency will prepare your online business for success in a data-driven world.

If you like this article, you might also like:

• What Are the Data Privacy Laws Around The World
• EU-US Data Privacy Framework (DPF) – A Complete Guide
• Biggest GDPR Fines Ever Recorded

Grab the WP Legal Pages and WP Cookie Consent Compliance Platform now!