With the worldwide implementation of data protection acts like the GDPR in the EU, it’s imperative that modern businesses start to take the necessary steps to ensure full and complete compliance.
Failure to comply with data protection regulations can result in hefty fines, a damaged reputation, and legal repercussions for an organisation. That said, having a dedicated in-house DPO can cost the organisation a lot of time and money.
This is why many companies on a budget are now encouraged to outsource their DPO. That way, they can rest assured that all their data protection needs are met without costing them a significant amount of money.
In this article, we’re explaining what outsourced DPO is and the different services they provide. By the end, you’ll know exactly what you can hire an outsourced DPO for and why you may need one for your business.
What Is Outsourced DPO?
Outsourced DPO refers to hiring an external data protection officer to join your team on a short or long-term basis. Outsourcing your DPO means that you can ensure compliance without having to bring yet another costly staff member to your in-house team.
There are many benefits to outsourcing the company’s DPO, but the biggest one is convenience. Abiding by data protection laws and ensuring the data of the company, employees, and customers is safe is a pretty arduous and time-consuming task.
But with an outsourced officer doing the work for you, you can rest assured that you’re safe from the repercussions of mishandling digital data while putting your and your staff’s energy into other aspects of running your company.
What Services Do Outsourced DPO’s Provide?
Data protection isn’t as basic and as straightforward as it might seem. This is why outsourced DPOs offer a wide range of services to their clients. That said, each third-party DPO will offer a unique service package. However, here are some of the most common services that outsourced DPOs can offer your business.
Client Services
The primary goal of outsourced DPOs is to ensure that clients are satisfied and all the data that needs protection is covered. This is why client services play a major role in outsourced DPO, which includes having an agent ready to speak with the client at any time and provide them with any information or data protection services they may need.
Account Management
The biggest benefit of an outsourced DPO is that they will manage your entire account regarding data protection. Data protection is a very complicated field, but with an outsourced DPO, you won’t have to worry about any of that.
Usually, outsourced DPO means that you have a full team handling your accounting, so the company’s management team really doesn’t have to worry about the data protection aspects of their business. Instead, they can put all their time and focus on other aspects of running a company.
Schedule of Works
Transparency is crucial when trying to comply with data protection acts. This is why outsourced DPOs should be able to provide you with a clear and concise view of what they are doing, why they are doing it, and when they are doing it. While you shouldn’t worry about protecting your data with an outsourced DPO, it’s still very important that your DPO keeps you updated on what they’re doing to keep your data protected and the company compliant with relevant regulations.
Documentation
Outsourced DPOs make sure that you can always prove your compliance to relevant agencies. This means that they document and compile all the relevant documents needed to prove GDPR compliance. That way, if an agent or agency comes in to question your company’s data protection practices, you have clear documentation that shows them what you’re doing to protect the company, customer, and employee data that you store.
Expert Advice
Since protecting customer data can be complicated, DPOs should also be able to advise the management team on what to do to keep their data protected and comply with relevant rules and regulations. This advice comes from vast industry knowledge and experience, which you won’t be able to get access to without spending a tremendous amount of time in the field.
A Full Data Protection Team
Hiring an outsourced DPO doesn’t mean you only have one person handling data protection for your company. In fact, it actually means that there’s an entire team behind you, helping you out with all your data protection needs and concerns.
Conclusion
It’s crucial that all companies have a DPO to ensure that the company, employee, and customer data is secured and they abide by relevant data privacy regulations. That said, doing this aLONE can be very complicated and time-consuming, which is why hiring an outsourced DPO to handle all of this for you can greatly benefit your organisation.
