After much delay, the British Parliament finally ratified the withdrawal agreement with the European Union. The United Kingdom left the European Union at the end of 31 January 2020.
The General Data Protection Regulation, which used to be binding law until the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union, is still applicable. When this article was written in 2021, no new national data protection act had been passed since Brexit. That has since changed: the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, which received Royal Assent on 19 June 2025, amends the UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018 and the privacy and electronic communications rules, with its provisions brought into force in stages.
The UK-GDPR came into effect on 1 January 2021. It throws light upon the general data protection regime that applies to most businesses and organizations.
What Are the Differences Between UK-GDPR And EU-GDPR?
The UK-GDPR is almost identical to the EU-GDPR. To be more precise, you have to implement a consent mechanism to enable users to gain control over all personal data they share. Processing personal data is only lawful if you have a lawful basis for it, and consent is only one of six lawful bases.
The aim is to impose a uniform data security law on everyone. It makes it easier for citizens to understand how their data is being used and, most importantly, they can raise complaints. When a company or organization works exclusively in the United Kingdom, it needs to obey the law. This means adhering to the rules set out by the UK-GDPR.
Contrast In GDPR Age of Valid Consent
One considerable difference between the two data privacy and security laws is that, in the United Kingdom, people have to be at least 13-years old to provide consent for the use of their personal data. Therefore, 13 is the lowest age that the GDPR will allow.
If someone sells ringtones to adolescents for their smartphones, personal data is collected upon the completion of the purchasing process. Additional protection is granted to minors because they’re not fully aware of the risks or consequences of their actions.
Any information addressing youngsters should be easily accessible, crystal-clear, and written in plain language.
The Introduction of ICO To Ensure Consistent Application of the GDPR
Another striking difference between the UK’s legislation and the EU-GDPR is that the Information Commissioner’s Office is responsible for promoting good practice in handling personal data. ICO, for short, is an independent supervisory authority, which takes the lead instead of the European Data Protection Board.
Besides giving advice and guidance on data protection, ICO makes sure data controllers provide basic information about their firm, handles disputes by determining whether or not a business/organization has complied with GDPR, and brings prosecutions for offences committed under the GDPR.
Different Rules on Transfers of Personal Data Between the UK And EU
By cross-border processing, it’s understood personal data processing that has a connection to more than one EU Member States. European countries that transfer data to the United Kingdom can do so according to the adequacy decision taken by the European Commission on 28 June 2021.
The outcome is that personal data can flow from the EU to a third country without having to take further precautions. The British government has emphasized the importance of international transfers of personal data in the context of global trade. Post-Brexit, a secretary of state in the UK issues an adequacy decision.
What Can You, As A Business, Do to Be Compliant with the GDPR?
If you’re an established organization, there are several things you can change or implement into your business to ensure full compliance with the data privacy and security law. Take reasonable steps to make sure that your company is protected against any liability. You must be compliant, but what does that really mean? Please continue reading to find out.
Understand What Data You Hold, Where It’s Coming From, And Where It’s Going
It’s important to become aware of the information you hold to identify individuals because it may represent personal data. Personal data is any type of information that can help identify a person, such as name, location data, IP address, political opinions, and more.
The list isn’t exhaustive. Whether or not the information is considered personal data depends on the context in which it’s collected. Record what personal data you hold as a business, the manner in which it was obtained, how it’s stored, how you intend to use that personal data, and, last but not least, where it’s going.
Rely On Consent to Process Someone’s Personal Data
If you rely on consent as a legal basis for personal data processing, the UK-GDPR will make things harder for you. Consent needs to be unambiguous, and it must be obtained before you start processing the data. Separate the consent request from the general terms and conditions.
Most importantly, you should avoid technical jargon and confusing terminology. The consent request should include details such as the name of the organization, why you want the data, what you plan to do with it, and the fact that individuals can withdraw their consent at any time.
Know What Constitutes a Personal Data A Breach
You, as well as your employees, should clearly understand what constitutes a personal data breach and put in place a system to prevent and escalate such incidents. Simply put, a data breach materializes when facts, statistics, and other items of information retained by an establishment is stolen or accessed without authorization.
Malicious actors leverage this information in phishing scams to give the impression of legitimacy. The GDPR gives the right to claim compensation if damage has been suffered as a result of breaking the data protection law.
Develop a culture in which employees feel safe to recognize the mistakes they’ve made. In case you didn’t know, this is the underlying cause of the issue.
Appoint A Data Protection Officer
You might need to appoint a data protection officer. The role of the DPO is to make sure that the company processes the personal data of its staff, customers, providers, and so on, in the way that’s required by the law.
If you undertake large-scale monitoring or processing of sensitive data, such as political opinions, data revealing ethnic origin, or philosophical beliefs, you’ll need a data protection officer.
Starting with basic awareness and an impact assessment of that data within the organization, they’ll oversee areas such as terms and conditions, website forms and policies, and contracts with third parties.
