The Business Case for Data Privacy - CWT

Excerpt from CWT

In 2011 a French start-up developed technology designed to collect geolocation data on smartphones and transfer the data onto a mobile marketing platform to support retailers’ 'drive to store' strategy and help them assess the impact of marketing investments for in-shop visits. The technology tracked the number of in-store visitors and customers’ movements after having seen a retailer’s ad. The problem? The data collected via customer’s phones was regulated personal data under GDPR.

In 2017, the CEO walked into his office and was met by four agents carrying out a data protection audit without prior notice.

A year or so later, the regulatory body issued a formal notice to comply for lack of legal basis: Indeed the company had collected data without prior consent. The regulator published a notice on a public website to raise awareness and it wasn’t long before the company’s reputation was damaged and it was forced to close its doors. The moral of the story? While not all cyber or privacy breaches lead to sanctions, they have the potential to impact a business model, revenue, and ultimately the viability of a company.

Throughout the pandemic, many companies have focused solely on preserving cash. But how directly involved should a CEO be in data-privacy? The answer is ‘very.’ Those who thought global privacy issues would die down after GDPR could not have been more wrong.

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