GDPR Compliance for Higher Education Institutions - 11 Ways of doing it right

GDPR was declared on January 25, 2012, implemented on April 27, 2016, and got into effect on May 25, 2018. It replaces the current 28 data protection laws in place across Europe with a single, robust regulation piece that should make cross-border activities within the EU easier and provide universal protection to natural persons.

Due to the complexity of this move by the European Union, the GDPR, also known as the new General Data Protection Regulation, is keeping everyone on their toes.

Effectively, the regulation transfers ownership of all personally identifiable data to natural persons, and it imposes obligations on organizations that hold that data to obtain informed consent, protect the data, allow the subjects to exercise their GDPR rights, and more.

Higher education institutions should get ready to understand what the GDPR means for them and take action to be compliant before May 25, 2018, especially in the current context of internationalization.

Universities need to implement better data protection procedures on the inside. At the same time, staff members in higher education must create or expand upon a "privacy-by-design" culture, with a focus on GDPR awareness.

At Creatrix Campus, we believe Data Privacy is an essential right. We have always respected our users' right to privacy and data protection. We've proven our dedication to this over the years by consistently exceeding industry standards.

We wish to delve deeper into data protection and compliance, which will help universities get ready for the take to get ready for this change. We have outlined ten ways for your institution to prepare for the GDPR data law and be in compliance with the new EU privacy laws below.

1. Learn about your university's GDPR involvement

One of the most frequently asked GDPR questions is who is affected by these new regulations. If your organization checks one or more of the following boxes, you must comply with the new GDPR law:

• You are a European Union institution or are involved in the European Union
• Your employees (professors, administrative and support staff, and so on) are from EU countries or have EU citizenship
• EU countries provided research grants to your institution
• You received donations from alumni who are EU citizens
• You host students from the EU
• Under certain conditions, you have students studying in EU countries
• You have information on prospective students who are interested in your university (for instance, tracking website visitors or leads who submitted contact forms)
• To summarise, it is extremely unlikely that GDPR will not apply to you

2. Learn about why GDPR is happening in the first place

The ultimate goal of GDPR is to strengthen and harmonize EU data protection. Recent cases, such as the one involving Cambridge Analytica, serve as a cautionary tale for better data protection legislation.

Higher education institutions that improve customer experiences and provide transparency to their students will be at the forefront. They can provide better and more secure data protection to their students, staff, and other stakeholders.

The GDPR aims to stop "bad actors" from using data by taking advantage of lax laws surrounding it.

Furthermore, GDPR can actually assist organizations in taking optimization measures. Imagine, for instance, that several of your teams—say let's from various faculties—unknowingly used similar third-party tools for the same kind of tasks. Consolidating these tools (e.g., using the same tools as much as possible) not only advances GDPR compliance but also streamlines your business processes and reduces costs. Reinventing the wheel is pointless.

3. Recognize your part in data handling

The two most frequent data-related roles universities can take on are the data controller and data processor.

The data controller is the one who is ultimately responsible and liable for compliance between the two roles. Higher education institutions fall under the first category in terms of student recruitment, acting as data controllers. The obligation your institution has to uphold in terms of data protection is increased by this position.

Please be aware that your role—whether you are the controller or the processor—depends greatly on the activity or type of data subject in question. Even an organization that processes data for its customers (such as a cloud storage provider or payroll service provider) is a controller of the data pertaining to its employees.

You might be a processor in some areas and a controller in others. You must ask yourself where you are acting on your own behalf and where you are acting on someone else's behalf in order to determine your role.

Sensitive, anonymous, and pseudonymous personal data are three very important categories of personal information that your institution needs to treat with special care.

4. Discover the types of data your institution handles 

Sensitive, anonymous, and pseudonymous personal data are three very important categories of personal information that your institution needs to treat with special care.

Sensitive personal data:

Any type of information that could be used to identify a person is considered to be sensitive personal data. This category of data is also known as "special categories." The special categories include, among other things, health information, racial or ethnic data, sexual life, and orientation information, and biometric information can be used to distinctively identify an individual. We don't advise collecting, storing, or using sensitive personal data if you don't need it because the regulations surrounding it are stringent.

Personal data:

The second data category is anonymous personal data, which is information that cannot be used to identify a data subject reasonably. Although this type of data is exempt from the GDPR, you should still exercise caution when handling it. A piece of information can be used to determine the identity of the data subject even in the absence of identifiers (with enough personal data available).

Pseudonymous data:

This category refers to identifying information that has been altered to make identification more difficult, such as pseudonyms that can be retrieved with a specific key. Examples include everything from simple things like using a student number instead of a name to sophisticated data encryption methods. For instance, this type of information includes names, contact information, and email addresses.

Pseudonymous data is a valuable method of protecting personal data, and GDPR explicitly encourages its use. However, it still falls under the GDPR because it can be linked to an individual if you have the right information. We wholeheartedly urge you to use pseudonymization whenever you can.

6. Verify the legal basis that your institution is using for its data 

Each activity involving the use of personal data in your institution should have a legal foundation.

The type of legal basis you choose will largely depend on the circumstances. Because of the power disparity between employers and employees, for instance, consent from employees is frequently insufficient and may not even be freely given.

Having said that, consent from potential students will probably be sufficient in many activities involving student recruitment. Under GDPR, consent must meet a number of requirements, including unambiguous, voluntarily given, specific, informed, withdrawable, and explicit.

Unambiguous: Include a crystal-clear affirmative action such as checking the "I agree" box on a form)

Voluntarily given: The data subject must be given the option to opt in or out

Specific: Consent is given specifically for certain processing activities

Informed: The data subject is aware of the processing to which they have consented

Withdrawable: The data subject has the right to revoke their consent at any time

Explicit: Particularly in the case of sensitive data, profiling, or international transfers

7. If your university falls under the category of the data controller, then get to know your obligations

Your university must adhere to a specific set of responsibilities as a data controller. Your institution will need to take the necessary steps for GDPR compliance and prove this through documentation, especially after May 25. You must give data subjects a chance to exercise their rights within 30 days of the data being collected.

You must create records of all processing activities, especially the high-risk ones, and have written agreements with your data processors. A positive environment for data protection requires collaboration with supervisory authorities.

8. Your university must adhere to a specific set of responsibilities as a data controller

Your institution will need to take the necessary steps for GDPR compliance and prove this through documentation, especially after May 25. You must give data subjects a chance to exercise their rights within 30 days of the data being collected.

You must create records of all processing activities, especially the high-risk ones, and have written agreements with your data processors. A positive environment for data protection requires collaboration with supervisory authorities.

9. Do your best to be ready for the worst-case scenario

This would be the worst-case scenario for any institution or organization that deals with data, given all the news about data breaches. Make sure you have procedures in place to identify, document, and look into potential data breach cases.

10. Consult a lawyer for guidance on your data protection framework

It can be very difficult to provide advice on the GDPR or any other EU piece of legislation for that matter. The most crucial advice we can give higher education institutions is to seek legal counsel and support for their particular situation as a result. The biggest impact on your GDPR change management process will come from bringing experienced privacy professionals on board.

11. Consider buying GDPR-compliant software

You should list your wants before selecting GDPR compliance software. How can you be sure the software is up to the task if you don't do that? Despite the complexity of GDPR compliance, don't be intimidated by the project.

Divide it into its constituent parts. Create a thorough understanding of what needs to be done or what you need your software to accomplish.

Not sure how to begin with? Creatrix Campus can help

Understanding the complexity of GDPR requirements and the potential risks facing your institution is challenging. At Creatrix we do the weightlifting job for you.

Our team understands that effective GDPR software will also carry out compliance evaluations and assist in personalizing your data protection program. You will be guided in all the crucial steps mentioned above.

With us, you get into a digital transformation with no fear of data security, reliability, and availability. We help you understand how the regulation affects your institution and what steps might be necessary to reduce the risks. Talk to our experts now.