The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), implemented in May 2018, imposes strict rules on how organizations handle personal data. Failure to comply can result in hefty fines and reputational damage, making it essential for storage administrators, IT architects, and compliance officers to choose the right storage solutions. Nexsan’s Assureon provides robust data protection, ensuring your organization can meet GDPR’s requirements with minimal operational overhead.
GDPR Requirements for Data Storage
GDPR affects any organization that processes the personal data of individuals in the European Union. This includes personal identifiers like names and addresses, as well as digital information like IP addresses and cookie data. GDPR covers how personal data is collected, stored, and processed, with a focus on security and individuals’ rights over their personal information.
Key requirements include:
- Data Security: Organizations must protect personal data through appropriate measures, such as encryption and regular security testing.
- Data Breach Notification: Authorities must be notified of data breaches within 72 hours of discovery.
- Record Keeping: Data controllers and processors must maintain records of their data activities.
- Data Subject Rights: GDPR grants individuals several rights, such as the right to access their data, request corrections, and ask for deletion (right to be forgotten).
Assureon’s Role in Supporting GDPR Compliance
Nexsan’s Assureon helps organizations meet GDPR requirements by offering secure, immutable storage that protects personal data throughout its lifecycle. Here’s how Assureon supports key aspects of GDPR compliance:
1. Immutable Storage for Data Security
Assureon’s immutable storage ensures that once data is stored, it cannot be altered or deleted before the retention period expires. This is crucial for protecting personal data from unauthorized changes, accidental deletions, or cyberattacks. Immutability ensures that records are preserved exactly as they were stored, supporting GDPR’s requirements for data integrity and security.
Assureon’s dual cryptographic hashing and advanced encryption protect data from tampering. These features provide storage administrators and IT architects with confidence that their data is both secure and verifiable, meeting GDPR’s requirement for implementing security measures.
2. Automated Data Retention and Access Control
GDPR mandates that personal data should not be kept longer than necessary. Assureon allows organizations to set automatic retention policies, ensuring that data is stored only for the duration required by GDPR. Whether retention limits are set at the application level or based on administrator rules, Assureon ensures compliance with GDPR’s data minimization principle.
Assureon’s unalterable audit logs also record every access to the data, detailing who accessed what data, when, and from which machine. This is essential for proving compliance and demonstrating that personal data is managed securely.
3. Efficient Data Breach Management
GDPR’s 72-hour notification rule for data breaches can be difficult to meet without the right systems in place. Assureon simplifies this by offering real-time monitoring and integrity checks, enabling IT teams to detect and respond to breaches quickly. If a breach occurs, Assureon’s audit logs show exactly what data was compromised and who accessed it. This detailed insight helps organizations report accurately and within the required time frame.
In addition, Assureon uses third-party verification to ensure that any data presented during a breach investigation is both accurate and tamper-proof. This level of trust ensures that businesses can provide reliable information to authorities.
For more detailed insights on handling regulatory compliance and data breaches, check out Nexsan’s regulatory compliance use case.
4. Compliance Auditing with Unalterable Logs
GDPR compliance doesn’t stop at securing data; it also requires proof of compliance during audits or investigations. Assureon generates unalterable audit logs, detailing every interaction with the stored data. This makes it easy for organisations to demonstrate their compliance efforts, minimizing the risk of fines and penalties during a regulatory audit.
Assureon’s logging system is designed to ensure that every access to the data is recorded, making it easier for IT architects to prove compliance with GDPR’s detailed regulations.
For more information on how Assureon supports regulatory and corporate compliance, visit Nexsan’s compliance resources.
Benefits of Using Assureon for GDPR Compliance
For IT teams and compliance officers, Assureon offers a range of features that simplify GDPR compliance:
- Immutable Data Protection: Data cannot be altered or deleted, preserving the integrity of personal records.
- Automated Retention Policies: Ensures that personal data is kept only for the legally required duration.
- Real-Time Breach Detection: Enables organizations to detect and respond to data breaches within GDPR’s 72-hour window.
- Audit-Ready Logs: Provides comprehensive, unalterable logs of all data interactions, simplifying compliance audits.
By automating critical compliance tasks and securing data with state-of-the-art technology, Assureon reduces the complexity of GDPR compliance while enhancing data security.
Conclusion
For storage administrators and IT architects tasked with ensuring GDPR compliance, Nexsan’s Assureon provides an ideal solution. Its immutable storage, real-time monitoring, and detailed audit logs enable organizations to meet GDPR’s strict requirements for data protection, retention, and breach management. Assureon simplifies the process of securing personal data while giving IT teams the tools they need to avoid fines and penalties.
If your organization is responsible for handling personal data, investing in a solution like Assureon will not only support GDPR compliance but also strengthen your overall data security strategy.