A year since the introduction of the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has seen financial advisers fully get to grips with how much it affects their businesses.
The aim of GDPR is to protect all EU citizens from privacy and data breaches by limiting the ways in which personal data can be stored and used.
Firms and individuals were inundated with warning ahead of the regulation’s introduction on 25 May 2018.
Just 8% of businesses surveyed by financial services technology provider Intelliflo said that GDPR had no impact on them.
A fifth described the impact on their daily business as “major”.
The majority (70%) said it has some impact, while 2% were unable to say.
Nick Eatock, Intelliflo’s executive chairman said: “It’s no surprise that advisers are reporting that the GDPR had an impact on their daily working lives – the risks of getting it wrong and the compensation costs that could bring has meant doing nothing is not an option.”
Intelliflo surveyed 170 users of its financial advisory software Intelligent Office.
Data breaches
The firms were also asked about the number of breaches their firms had to report to client, prospects or the regulator.
- 83% had reported no breaches;
- 13% had reported between one and five; and
- 4% did not know.
Getting ready
Asked how regularly employees receive formal training on data protection and/or GDPR, firms said:
- 73% received training once a year;
- 17% received it just once – when the regulation came into force on 25 May 208;
- 8% receive it every six months; and,
- 2% never receive it in a formal way.
