The Role of a Data Protection Officer

The GDPR requires organizations (both controllers and processors) covered by the law to appoint a Data Protection Officer under Article 37 (DPO) if they meet one of the following criteria:

• It is a public authority or body (excluding courts acting in their judicial capacity).
• Its core activities consist of data processing operations that require regular and systematic monitoring of data subjects on a large scale.
• Its core activities consist of large-scale processing of special categories of data (sensitive health data, religion, race, or sexual orientation) and/or personal data relating to criminal convictions and offences.

In this article, we’ll explain more about the DPO role and the tasks they should be responsible for.

Who can Fill the DPO Role?

The GDPR states that the data protection officer shall be designated based on expert knowledge of data protection law and practices, and the ability to perform tasks detailed later in this article.

Hiring or appointing a staff member to serve as your DPO is not required in all cases (see above). Further, organizations can contract with a third-party service provider to fill the role.

Data Protection Officer Duties

The GDPR identifies the following tasks for a DPO to perform:

• Advise staff on their GDPR obligations.
• Monitor compliance with the GDPR and internal data protection policies and procedures.
• Advise and monitor the performance of data protection impact assessments (DPIAs).
• Serve as a contact point for supervisory officials on issues related to data protection.

Here are some common day-to-day duties you can expect a DPO to handle:

Monitoring data processing activities: Oversee how personal data is collected, used, and stored within the organization to identify any potential compliance issues.

Conducting audits: Perform regular security audits to evaluate the effectiveness of data protection measures and identify areas for improvement.

Policies and procedures: Develop, implement, and update data protection policies and procedures to ensure they align with legal requirements and organizational objectives.

Employee training: Develop and conduct training sessions for employees on data protection laws, policies, and best practices.

Culture Development: Promote a culture of data protection by communicating and emphasizing the importance of safeguarding personal data.

Communicate with data protection authorities: Act as the main point of contact between the organization and relevant data protection authorities.

Handling data requests: Respond to inquiries and requests from consumers about the processing of their data and the exercise of their data protection rights.

Documentation: Maintain records of processing activities, including the purposes for which personal data is processed and the security measures in place.

Advisement: Guide management and other stakeholders on data protection-related issues and decisions.

Monitor evolving regulations: Stay up to date with changes in data protection laws and regulations and how they will impact the organization’s compliance efforts.

What About the CCPA?

The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) does not require organizations to appoint a Data Protection Officer. However, we recommend that businesses designate someone responsible for overseeing compliance. While the specific DPO requirement isn’t in place, it’s best practice to have someone acting in a similar role to ensure compliance with the CCPA.

CompliancePoint has a team of privacy experts who can help your organization comply with the GDPR, CCPA, and all state privacy laws. Reach out to us at connect@compliancepoint.com to learn more about our services.