fbpx
0

WEBSITE COMPLIANCE: Why Should My Website Comply With Data Protection Legislation?

WEBSITE DATA PROTECTION OBLIGATIONS!

We have the expertise to assist.

Why Should My Website Comply With Data Protection Legislation?

The necessity and importance of your business having policies in place that address data protection requirements is often overlooked. It is your legal obligation to ensure that measures are taken to protect the data and personal information received through your website. This is to prevent such data and personal information from being misused by third parties for fraud.

  1. Does my website comply with data protection legislation?
    It is advisable for your website to have a privacy policy that indicates that:
  • The data subject (customer) or a competent person where the data subject is a child consents to the processing of personal information;
  • Processing is necessary to carry out actions for the conclusion or performance of a contract to which the data subject is party;
  • Processing complies with an obligation imposed by law on the responsible party (you);
  • Processing protects a legitimate interest of the data subject;
  • Processing is necessary for proper performance of public law by a public body; or
  • Processing is necessary for pursuing the legitimate interests of the responsible party or of a third party to whom the information is supplied.
  1. How important are hyperlinks?
    A website must have a privacy policy accessible through a hyperlink. The Electronic Communications and Transactions Act (ECT Act) 25 of 2002 at section 11(3) states that information incorporated into an agreement is regarded as having been incorporated into a data message if such information is-
  • Referred to in a way in which a reasonable person would have noticed the reference thereto and incorporation thereof; and
  • Accessible in a form in which it may be read, stored and retrieved by the other party.
    With this the ECT Act recognises that information can be incorporated into a document through the use of hyperlinks and that contracts can be performed by machines functioning as electronic agents for parties to an electronic transaction.
  1. What are the benefits of my website complying with data protection legislation?
    Some of the benefits of compliance with data protection legislation and regulations include trust and credibility, a better understanding of the data that is being collected and how it is managed.
  1. How do I assess my website’s legal compliance?
    Contact us at dataprotection@dkvg.co.za for further assistance.