August 09, 2023
Anonybit Team
Applying Biometric Data to GDPR and Other Data Protection Laws and Regulations
Biometric data GDPR compliance is a crucial aspect of data protection in today’s digital world. Understanding the impact of GDPR on how businesses collect and use personal data including biometrics is essential to navigating the complexities of data privacy regulations. This article will discuss the vital topic of applying biometric data to GDPR and other data protection laws and regulations and highlight how businesses can comply with these regulations effectively.
Anonybit’s identity management platform is an invaluable tool that can help businesses comply with GDPR, specifically as relates to biometric authentication techniques and usage. The solution provides a seamless way for organizations to manage biometric data securely while maintaining compliance with data protection regulations.
Biometric Data In The Context Of GDPR
Biometric data, as defined by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), refers to a unique set of personal data derived from specific technical processes linked to an individual’s physical, physiological, or behavioral attributes. This type of data includes:
- Facial recognition
- Iris scans
- Fingerprint data,
These types offer a distinct identification of a person. While a mere photograph doesn’t qualify as biometric data, a face print calculation derived from that photograph does due to the technical processing involved. Unlike replaceable passwords, biometric data’s inherent uniqueness underscores its sensitivity and the heightened need for data protection. The GDPR’s definition of biometric data emphasizes the importance of ensuring that this type of personal information is handled carefully to safeguard individuals’ privacy and security.
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Biometric Data GDPR Laws And Regulations
The European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was formally adopted on April 27, 2016, and its provisions took effect on May 25, 2018. The GDPR establishes a harmonized framework within the EU for data protection and privacy, emphasizing the right to be forgotten and affirmative consent and imposing severe penalties for non-compliance with these rules. With the increasing use of biometric data, it is crucial to understand how these regulations impact the collection and processing of such information.
Impact of GDPR on Biometric Data Collection
Under the GDPR, the collection and processing of biometric data are subjected to several requirements. Organizations must establish a lawful basis for processing biometric data, requiring a valid legal reason for collecting such information—such as the necessity for contract performance or compliance with legal obligations. Organizations must ensure transparent processing of biometric data. Individuals must be informed about the purpose of data collection, how the data will be utilized and stored, and their rights concerning their data.
The Role of Consent in Biometric Data Collection
Obtaining explicit consent from individuals is a critical aspect of GDPR when it comes to collecting and processing personal data, including biometric information. Organizations must ensure that individuals have voluntarily provided their consent and demonstrate that consent has been effectively obtained.
GDPR acknowledges that obtaining consent for biometric data can be challenging due to its nature. In some cases, obtaining explicit consent may not be feasible or practical, mandating organizations to assess whether there is a legitimate interest in processing the biometric data and whether it outweighs the individual’s rights and interests.
Decentralized Biometrics for Enhanced Security and User Experience
At Anonybit, our decentralized biometrics system design helps companies prevent data breaches and account takeover fraud. With a decentralized biometrics solution, companies can enable passwordless login, wire verification, step-up authentication, and help desk authentication. We aim to protect companies from data breaches, account takeovers, and synthetic identity fraud.
To achieve this goal, we offer security solutions such as:
- Secure storage of biometrics and PII data
- Support for the entire user lifecycle
- 1:1 biometric authentication and 1:N biometric matching to prevent duplicates, synthetics and blocklisted identities
Anonybit eliminates the tradeoffs between privacy and security. Prevent data breaches, enable strong authentication to eliminate account takeovers, and enhance the user experience across the enterprise using Anonybit.
Book a free demo today to learn more about our integrated identity management platform.
How Anonybit Helps Businesses to Comply with GDPR
Anonybit helps businesses comply with GDPR in several key ways:
Decentralized data storage
Anonybit uses a decentralized biometrics infrastructure that eliminates centralized repositories of sensitive data, reducing the risk of large-scale data breaches.
Data minimization
The system employs zero-knowledge proofs for biometric matching, automatically discarding original biometric samples and templates after processing. This ensures compliance with GDPR’s data minimization requirements.
Active consent management
Anonybit’s framework supports the collection of explicit and informed consent for biometric data processing, aligning with GDPR’s consent requirements.
Enhanced data security
By leveraging advanced privacy-enhancing technologies like multi-party computing, Anonybit provides stronger safeguards against unauthorized access and disclosure of personal data.
Data localization compliance
Despite its decentralized nature, Anonybit’s system can ensure that data processing is limited to specified geographic locations, helping businesses meet GDPR’s data residency requirements.
Flexible architecture
Anonybit’s APIs and flexible architecture allow for easy integration with existing systems, enabling businesses to implement GDPR-compliant processes without significant disruption.
Comprehensive data protection
The system can handle various types of structured and unstructured data sets, allowing businesses to extend GDPR compliance efforts beyond just biometric data.
Compliance posture enhancement
Anonybit’s solutions are designed to improve organizations’ overall compliance with GDPR and other privacy regulations, reducing concerns around storing and managing sensitive data.
Learn more about this through our blog post series about biometrics and privacy law compliance (part 1, part 2), or on our enterprise data protection solution page.
How Does GDPR Protect Privacy?
GDPR regulations regarding biometric data protection include the right for individuals to control their personal information, with provisions like the right to be forgotten. The new rules ensure data subjects can grant explicit consent before collecting information. This provision allows individuals to withdraw consent whenever they wish.
Data Breach Notification Requirements
One key aspect of the GDPR is the requirement that companies report data breaches within 72 hours of discovery. The regulation upholds consumer rights and enhances enterprise security by enforcing this strict timeline. This provision ensures that companies dealing with biometric data must swiftly report any incidents that may compromise this sensitive information.
GDPR Penalties for Mismanagement of Biometric Data
The GDPR imposes stringent penalties for companies that fail to secure biometric data. Violating the regulations can result in significant fines, amounting to as much as 20 million euros or 4% of the company’s annual global turnover. This provision ensures that companies handling biometric information have a legal obligation to protect this data adequately.
Global Application of GDPR Regulations
The GDPR is a global law that extends its reach to non-EU organizations that process personal data related to EU data subjects. The regulation ensures that all entities handling biometric data are subject to the GDPR’s protective measures, regardless of geographical location. This global application ensures that biometric data is managed according to stringent privacy and security standards worldwide.
Privacy by Design and By Default
Another crucial aspect of the GDPR is the emphasis on privacy by design and by default. The regulation mandates that data collection should be limited to necessary purposes only. Companies must collect personal data for explicit and legitimate reasons, ensuring that the information is not misused or processed in ways inconsistent with these purposes. This provision helps companies avoid data misuse and ensures that biometric data is used responsibly.
Focus on Biometric Data Privacy
The GDPR specifically focuses on biometrics, recognizing the technology’s significant potential and the need for robust privacy protections. The regulations aim to safeguard citizens’ rights concerning collecting and managing biometric data by both public and private organizations. By emphasizing biometric data privacy, the GDPR ensures that this sensitive information is managed sensibly and securely.
GDPR Compliance In Biometric Data Management
To process biometric data under the GDPR, entities must establish a lawful foundation for its processing. Several legitimate foundations may apply to the processing of biometric data:
Consent
Entities can rely on the data subject’s explicit consent to process biometric data. Businesses need to ensure that they have obtained clear and specific consent from individuals before collecting or processing their biometric data. Consent should be freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous, aligning with the GDPR’s requirements.
Contractual Performance
Processing biometric data may be necessary for contractual performance with the data subject. In this case, businesses need to ensure that the processing of biometric data is essential for the performance of a contract to which the data subject is a party.
Legal Obligations Compliance
Entities may process biometric data to comply with legal obligations. Businesses must ensure that biometric data is processed to fulfill legal obligations imposed on them by applicable laws and regulations.
Legitimate Interests
Entities may rely on their legitimate interests to process biometric data, provided they do not override the rights and freedoms of data subjects. Businesses must conduct a legitimate interests assessment to ensure that their interests do not harm individuals’ fundamental rights and freedoms regarding their biometric data.
Individual Rights and Their Implications for Biometric Data
The GDPR confers several rights to individuals that have implications for the handling of biometric data:
Right to Access and Rectify
Data subjects can request access to and correction of their biometric data. Businesses need mechanisms to facilitate individuals’ exercise of their right to access and rectify their biometric data.
Right to be Forgotten
Data subjects can request the deletion of their biometric data under specific circumstances. Businesses must ensure they can promptly erase individuals’ biometric data upon request if the data is no longer necessary for the purposes for which it was collected or processed.
Right to Restriction of Processing
Data subjects can request limitations in processing their biometric data in certain situations. Businesses must respect individuals’ right to request restrictions on processing their biometric data, especially when accuracy is disputed or processing is unlawful.
Right to Object to Processing
Data subjects can object to the processing of their biometric data. Businesses must respect individuals’ right to object to processing their biometric data unless they demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds for the processing that override the data subjects’ interests, rights, and freedoms.
Technical and Organizational Strategies for Ensuring Adherence
To secure conformity with GDPR during biometric data processing, entities must deploy suitable technical and organizational tactics:
Conducting DPIAs
Organizations must conduct Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs) for high-risk processing of biometric data to identify and mitigate potential risks. DPIAs help businesses assess the necessity and proportionality of biometric data processing and implement measures to ensure compliance with the GDPR.
Implementing Protective Measures
Organizations must implement robust measures to protect biometric data from unauthorized access and ensure its confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Businesses must also adopt appropriate security measures to safeguard biometric data from breaches and misuse.
Incorporating Privacy by Design
Organizations should adopt privacy-by-design principles when designing systems that process biometric data. Privacy by design involves integrating privacy considerations into the design and development of systems, ensuring biometric data protection and compliance with the GDPR from the outset.
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The Consequences of Non-Compliance with GDPR
Penalties for Breaching GDPR Regulations
The consequences of not complying with GDPR regulations on biometric management can be severe. In case of non-compliance, GDPR mandates fines of up to €20 million or 4% of an organization’s annual global turnover, whichever is higher. These fines can be imposed for various infractions, including:
- Failure to obtain proper consent
- Failure to implement appropriate security measures
- Failure to notify individuals in case of a data breach
Impact on Business Reputation and Trust
Failing to comply with GDPR can significantly impact a business’s reputation and trust, in addition to financial penalties. Consumers are increasingly aware of their data privacy rights and are more likely to trust organizations prioritizing data protection. A breach of GDPR regulations can lead to a loss of customer trust, which can be challenging to regain.
The consequences of not complaining about the GDPR regulations on biometric management are severe fines and penalties and a negative impact on an organization’s reputation and trustworthiness. Businesses must prioritize compliance with GDPR to avoid these serious repercussions.
Notable Fines And Cases From Non-Compliance
Swedish School’s Oversight
A school in Northern Sweden implemented facial recognition technology to monitor student attendance, resulting in a fine of approximately 20,000 euros imposed by the Swedish Data Protection Authority (DPA). The school faced violations under multiple GDPR articles despite seeking student consent for data processing.
The DPA deemed the school’s rationale for data processing flawed due to the power imbalance between students and the institution. This case underlines the significance of securing legal grounds for processing biometric data, especially in sensitive environments like educational institutions.
Dutch Company’s Misstep
A Dutch company required employees to scan fingerprints for attendance and time registration, leading to a 725,000 euro fine by the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (AP), the Dutch Data Protection Authority. The AP found the company lacked legal grounds to process this category of biometric data, which is classified as special personal data.
Monique Verdier, AP’s vice-chair, emphasized the heightened protection needed for biometric data, stressing the potential irreversible harm from mishandling such data, like blackmail or identity fraud.
4 Best Practices For Ensuring GDPR Compliance When Managing Biometric Data
1. Comprehending GDPR Prerequisites
Understanding the key principles, lawful foundations, and commitments GDPR dictates for handling personal information, including biometric data. Organizations must familiarize themselves with GDPR requirements to ensure compliance when managing biometric data.
2. Executing a Data Cataloging Process
To comply with GDPR regulations, companies need to identify and document all instances of biometric data processing activities within their entities. This includes:
- Outlining the purpose
- Legal justification
- Data movement related to the processing of biometric data
3. Establishing Legitimate Use
Organizations must ascertain an appropriate legal basis for processing biometric data to comply with GDPR. This could involve:
- Valid consent
- Fulfilling contractual responsibilities
- Adhering to legal mandates
- Relying on legitimate interests as the legal basis for processing biometric data.
4. Employing Suitable Security Safeguards
Implementing technical and organizational mechanisms to protect biometric data against unauthorized access, misuse, and breaches is essential. This involves measures such as:
- Encryption
- Access management protocols
- Security assessments
- Staff education
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Book A Free Demo To Learn More About Our Integrated Identity Management Platform
At Anonybit, we help companies prevent data breaches and account takeover fraud with our decentralized biometrics technology. With our decentralized biometrics framework, companies can enable passwordless login, wire verification, step-up authentication, help desk authentication, and more.
Comprehensive Security Solutions for Companies
We aim to protect companies from data breaches, account takeovers, synthetic identity on the rise, privacy regulations, and digital transformation. To achieve this goal, we offer security solutions such as:
- Secure storage of biometrics and PII data
- Support for the entire user lifecycle
- 1:1 authentication and 1:N matching for lookups and deduplication
Balancing Privacy and Security with Anonybit’s Integrated Platform
Anonybit eliminates the tradeoffs between privacy and security. Prevent data breaches, reduce account takeover fraud, and enhance the user experience across the enterprise using Anonybit. Book a free demo today to learn more about our integrated identity management platform.