Customer expectations and AI-based decision making
Hardly a day goes by without each of us being subjected to automated decisions. Some decisions are mundane and have no real consequences: a vending machine decides whether you inserted a valid coin and whether to dispense the crisps you asked for; a traffic signal detects your car, decides it’s your turn to go, and […]
Privacy and trust: Consumers and business at odds
Last month, global IT giant Cisco released its 6th annual Privacy Benchmark Study. The report incorporated responses from over 3,100 organisations in 26 countries. Cisco found that companies in every size category had maintained or increased their privacy spending despite global economic challenges, and that those investments are paying off. This year, more companies (36% […]
Privacy by Design Adopted as ISO Standard
One of the first ISO standards of 2023 will help businesses to embed privacy into their products and services from Day 1 with Privacy by Design. The new ISO 31700, scheduled for release on 08 February and officially titled “Consumer protection – Privacy by design for consumer goods and services”, is inspired by Ann Cavoukian’s […]
Less is more: privacy compliance starts with data minimisation
Ask any board of directors how the company manages privacy risks. They will probably mention cybersecurity, staff training, and privacy notices. You might even hear about cookie consent and international data transfers. What you probably won’t hear much about is ‘data minimisation’ or ‘storage limitation’. That’s a shame, because the most effective way to reduce your privacy risk level is to minimise the personal data you collect and store. This approach is also required by most privacy laws, including the GDPR (UK and EU) […]
Say what?! Weird and wacky GDPR terms
Reviewing business app T&Cs isn’t as fun as it sounds … until it is. Some app developers take their GDPR compliance seriously, while some clearly just want to tick the appropriate boxes and move on. And then there are those that are completely oblivious. This month, we’ve come across some real howlers while doing a data audit for a client. We’ve uncovered about 70 different apps […]
Data protection and Brexit: 6-month delay for Schrems 3
Deal gives EC more time to assess UK data protection laws. But time isn’t the problem. The facts are. With Brexit, few issues affect more businesses than EU data protection (privacy) rules. Huge numbers of businesses rely on the free flow of personal data in and out of the UK, often without realising it. In […]
Isn’t it time to ditch “shall” from your legal documents?
The first clue that you are reading a commercial contract is usually the word shall. It’s a word most people use rarely in everyday speech, but it is common in legal documents. Why is that? For the most part, I think shall has had its day. And there are at least two good reasons to […]
Why most of us dread reading the fine print (hint: it’s not the font size)
Leave someone (especially a solicitor) alone to draft anything “legal” and there’s no telling what will happen. With luck, you’ll get something straightforward and business-like. With less luck, you’ll get a more traditional legal document: tedious and flowery prose, chock full of legalese and artificial formality. It’s why so many people dread reading the fine […]
3 common negotiation traps and how to avoid them
It’s a scene that’s repeated over and over in commercial negotiations: the parties shake hands, but there’s no real agreement. They don’t realise they were saying yes to different things. Whenever this happens, at some point down the road someone’s expectations will be dashed. The result? Renegotiation, delay, expense, and strained relationships. You might be […]
Is legal fine print undermining your brand?
Sustainable growth in any business requires a solid brand. Marketing, sales, and product development teams work hard to deliver a consistent brand experience through the company’s goods, services, shops and websites. But where do your terms of business fit into the customer experience? Does Legal draft terms and conditions, then send them over for Marketing […]