2017 is turning out to be a tumultuous year for compliance. A combination of Brexit, a Trump presidency and the reform of EU privacy rules has put regulatory change and uncertainty back into the spotlight. Mega-size fines have returned too and compliance officers worry about personal liability more than ever.

1. The GDPR – the countdown is on

If your company hasn’t familiarized itself with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) yet you may already be behind. The GDPR was ratified in May 2016 and designed to bring personal data protection into the digital age. It imposes stringent requirements about how companies store and handle the personal data of EU citizens. The regulation will have far-reaching impacts – from how organizations obtain consent, use cookies on their website, to giving teeth to the right to be forgotten. Don’t think that, as this is EU legislation, that GDPR won’t affect you. It affects any organization that collects and stores personal data of EU citizens. With the GDPR becoming enforceable in May 2018, the countdown is on for organizations to prepare. The GDPR will impact more than just the Compliance team but indeed many other parts of the business.