The introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) today, Friday May 25, is the biggest sea change the digital economy has faced. Designed to give citizens greater control over their data, it will also force data seekers, such as businesses, to be more open, transparent and secure when handling an individual’s personal information.
Data is at the heart of the digital economy. To businesses, data is retail gold, and post-GDPR this will only be amplified. The World Economic Forum (WEF) has stated that data is the oil of the 21st Century, even going so far as to define personal data as an asset in its own right. Indeed, the WEF has estimated that the value of this data will be worth €1trillion (£877billion) in Europe alone by 2020.
The challenge businesses face, however, is balancing their need to sell directly to customers - personalised and targeted messaging being...
