A recent survey, conducted by Dimensional Research, has revealed that the levels of unpreparedness for both US and UK firms for compliance with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) are high.
Results seen in both the UK and US studies confirm the clients’ fears about the difficulty of privacy management. It also backs up the claims that technology investment will play a massive role in complying with GDPR and establishment of accountability program that is easy to execute.
With just eight months until the May 25 introduction of GDPR, companies all over the world are implementing strategies that will allow them to adjust their internal structures and processes to comply with the regulations. TrustArc and Dimensional Research sampled 203 UK and 204 US data privacy professionals in a survey to compare the two states’ preparations for GDPR compliance.
The findings of the two studies revealed several significant points. The study results showed that regardless of the business location, privacy will pose a major challenge.
Those surveyed from the UK and US felt that privacy and data protection is an essential aspect but is proving to be difficult to achieve. The results pointed out that 96% of US and 94% of UK respondents think that significance of privacy is on the rise. 98% of the US and 93% of the UK participants believe that the complexity of privacy governance is rising.
In relation to GDPR preparations, the study showed that both the UK and the US are not ready for the May 25 2018 date. The research showed that over 60% of the US and UK professionals are yet to put GDPR compliance plans into action. In addition to this, 90% must make a large investment in new capabilities to comply with the new standards.
For technological investment to ensure automation of data privacy, the survey indicated that the US reports a figure of 55% while the UK is at 57%. Brexit has not been a n obstacle for UK-based companies firms in their attempts to reach GDPR compliance.
Brexit is not thought to have affected GDPR budgets as 74% of the respondents did not reduce their budgets in the UK. However, the United States has had more investment in privacy governance and GDPR preparedness than the United Kingdom. Overall, both the United States and the United Kingdom have seen a rise in investment in privacy management.
97% and 90% of the survey participants from US and UK respectively feel that privacy management has been steadily increasing. US-based companies tend to invest more in GDPR compared to the UK-based organizations. The research showed that while the UK had only 19% of the firms investing over $1m, 23% of the United States firms allocate more than $1m to GDPR funds.
