In the implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation (DSGVO) there seems to be a need to catch up. This is suggested by a representative survey commissioned by the digital association Bitkom, in which 503 persons responsible for data protection in German companies were interviewed by telephone. Requested were companies from 20 employees.
According to the study, one year after the new data protection rules were fully applied in May 2018, according to its own assessment, only a quarter of the companies surveyed "fully completed" the implementation of the new rules.
If you also include those companies that think that they have implemented the rules in large parts, you come after Bitkom data after all, to 67 percent of companies. "Another 24 percent have implemented the regulation in part," it says in a press release to the survey, "six percent are still at the beginning."
On Tuesday, Susanne Dehmel, member of the Bitkom Executive Board, said at the presentation of the results, there was still "great uncertainty" in the interpretation of the new rules.
Complete conversion allegedly impossible
According to Bitkom, more than half of the companies in the study complain about missing implementation aids. Ninety-four percent of companies also demand improvements to the GDPR, while 95 percent see the regulation as not fully feasible - which raises the question of what is meant by the "full implementation" that every fourth company speaks about. 75 percent of the surveyed data protection officers stated that the customers of the companies were rather annoyed by additional leaflets and information.
The Bitkom calls in view of these results improvements to the GDPR. The European Commission should especially relieve small and medium-sized companies and facilitate the use of data in the research environment, says the association.
The Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information, Ulrich Kelber, was in favor of facilitating small businesses. This could exist, for example, in the information and documentation obligations. "Overall, there must be Nachsteuerungen," said Kelber. However, this also included tightening - such as profiling - profiling using personal data - and scoring.
Incidentally, the DSGVO is seen as trend-setting in most companies, despite all criticism. At 64 percent, according to the survey, at least two-thirds believe that the DSGVO will set global standards for the handling of personal data. More than half - 57 percent - respondents believe that the GDPR will lead to a more level playing field in the EU.