GDPR for Mobile App Owners: An Opportunity or Challenge?

Get Solved All Your Doubts About GDPR:

What is GDPR? What does gdpr stand for?
What GDPR compliance means for American businesses?
How will it affect you?
What’s the highest risk to US businesses with GDPR?

The data of your app users from the app might be shared across service providers or on the open web. Being an app owner you must be aware of this.

In order to control this information explosion on the open web, general data protection regulation (GDPR) is all set to introduce on 25th May 2018 in EU for app users, owners, and mobile app developers. The General Data Protection Regulation is intended to protect user data when it is collected and stored. Under this act, app users are able to control their data, opt-out and delete their data when they so want.

The app users in EU can now grant permission for accessing their personally identifiable information (PII) in exchange for ‘FREE’ service.

What’s For Mobile App Owners and Developers?

Not just for app users, GDPR compliance is bringing new regulations for mobile app developers & owners. Now, app developers will have to start working on these regulations to meet GDPR requirements.

Here are the major highlights of GDPR:

Explicit Consent

The GDPR explains that app developers or management must request and get consent in order to collect, store, use or move the personal data. They must explicitly define what type of personal data they are collecting around users and why it is being collected. Further, it is necessary that app developers receive a clear permission to collect this data.

Data Encryption

App Developers or app owners need to encrypt entire personal data and notify users about it. If any app requires saving personal data, then it must be encrypted with the precise and powerful algorithms like hashing.

Update User About Security Incidents

It is necessary to ensure that the cookies and sessions expire and are removed once the user logs out. Users must be notified if the app is utilizing cookies. The app should include an option for users to deny or accept cookies, and cookies must be correctly removed after logout or inactivity. Also, the logs must be stored in a secure location in an encrypted form.

The Right To Be Forgotten

The GDPR brings a Data Erasure right for EU. It is very significant for app owners to erase data of users who abandon their services. This means people can have data controllers to remove their personal data, stop the future publishing of any data and prevent third parties from processing their data.

Obligatory Data Break Notifications

If the database is breached, developers must inform the user and the authorities within 72 hrs of knowing the database leak. This is highly important, since data breaches may result in a threat to the freedoms and rights of people.

Privacy by Design

GDPR makes the privacy design mandatory and it is a legal requirement. This means that data protection and privacy must be considered while starting the project or throughout a project’s lifecycle. As per the Article 23 of the GDPR, controllers should only collect and process data that is really essential for a project to be accomplished.

Data Protection Officers

According to GDPR, for large enterprises, the internal record keeping requirements and the engagement of data protection officers will be compulsory. DPOs will be hired for their professional skills on data protection practices and laws.

Use Of Third-Party SDKs

Even if the app owners have followed all the necessary steps to make their app GDPR compliant, the SDKs need to be considered. It is the part where app developers and publishers must pay extra attention to fulfill their GDPR efforts. Developers must ensure app compliance with GDPR using third-party SDKs.

Conclusion

In order to serve European citizens with enhanced privacy and protections, and to help businesses to demonstrate better compliance and responsibility, a proper and robust personal data protection regulation was needed. And GDPR comes in to picture as an inclusive solution. Now, it will mandatory for companies and app developers to build apps in compliance with GDPR regulations. You can contact us to build your app with GDPR compliance.