Onward and upward in privacy matters: the PIA

ALERT

The Evaluation of the impact of Personal Data Protection  (Evaluación del Impacto en materia de Protección de Datos Personales – EIPD), also known by its initials PIA (from  Privacy Impact Assessment), is a useful tool that provides for personal privacy risk assessment prior to the launch of  a product or service which, in turn, makes possible the identification, removal or, as the case may be, minimization of risks before they occur.

Tools of this kind, along with the taking of measures such as the undertaking of occasional audits, adequate documentation of data treatment or the appointment of a Data Protection Officer, make up a powerful array of measures for the advancement of proactive policing of privacy issues at the centre of any company or group. Furthermore, in addition to fostering user confidence, such measures also help to prevent damage to the image and reputation of such entities.

According to the governing regulations, the implementation of the an EIPD is not obligatory; however, if one follows the draft of the upcoming European Regulation on Data Protection, the EIPD will become obligatory in certain cases.

On the 17 March of this year, the Spanish Data Protection Agency (la Agencia Española de Protección de Datos  – AEPD) published a draft EIPD guide, simultaneous with the start-up of a public consultation process for the purposes of compiling relevant comments on the guide. Following participative development, the intention is to then publish a final text of the guide that will also take into account the opinion of the different interested bodies.

The aim of the guide is to form a reference for those entities that wish to takeproactive steps for improvement of data protection and privacy in the exercise of their core business of provision of goods and services.

If you have further interest in this area you can access the draft guide,here and can contact us at the following email addresses if you require any clarifications or additional information.

We hope that this alert will be of use to you. Best regards