For all the tremendous opportunities that the digitization of business operations has unlocked, there are also complex security and data privacy challenges that organizations have to navigate. In the interests of business privacy and security, legislation exists to hold organizations and policymakers to account. None are perhaps more influential and necessary than the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Just the other day, a new safety report was published urging widespread organizational policy changes in the wake of rapid AI advancement. With data ostensibly one of the most valuable commodities currently, organizations must ensure robust GDPR compliance as they continue to digitize and scale their operations.
One of the more complex operations that businesses are trying to leverage and also remain compliant with is image management and processing. While many organizations invest substantial resources into image generation, copyright protection, licensing, and distribution, many overlook a critical aspect - GDPR compliance.
Article 7 of the GDPR specifies explicit consent requirements that organizations must adhere to if they are to achieve their goals in both automation and compliance. This intersection of privacy rights, data integrity, and organizational security demands a strategy that encompasses more than standard data management policies. With that in mind, it’s prudent to explore how much weight this piece of data protection legislation carries in an organization’s automation and digitization journey.
Understanding the Scope of Article 7 in Image Publication
Enacted by the EU in 2018, GDPR aims to protect the fundamental rights and freedoms of individuals pertaining to their personal data and its processing. Every organization - regardless of sector - must consider GDPR when gathering, managing, or dispensing personal data, including images and videos.
In an organization’s image library, there are bound to be photos or videos of employees. If an individual can be identified, then those assets - often classed as marketing material - are considered personal data.
Article 7 of the GDPR fundamentally transforms how organizations handle personal data, including images containing identifiable individuals. Article 7 stipulates conditions of consent, outlining what is mandatory by the data controller when obtaining, collecting, and distributing consent. Organizations must implement data protection strategies that preserve privacy rights and data integrity throughout any visual asset’s lifecycle.
Personal data in visual content presents unique challenges for security teams. Whether it’s employee headshots on corporate websites or candid event photographs shared on social media, the GDPR classification remains the same if these individuals are identifiable.
Meanwhile, companies have to grapple with whether their online images should depict real people, have been generated by AI, or have been digitally enhanced. As such, organizations must maintain rigorous, stringent consent management processes while ensuring the security of assets and individuals in the protection of any sensitive data.
Requirements for Consent Management Under GDPR Article 7
Organizations must implement several measures to ensure compliance with Article 7's consent requirements:
Consent Documentation
They must retain accurate, verifiable records of consent for each image containing identifiable people. This documentation should be timestamped and signed, outline the scope of permitted usage, and contain the confirmation of informed consent. Internal security teams must ensure these records are stored securely with rigid access control measures implemented to prevent unauthorized access, modification, or misuse.
Granular Control Systems
An organization’s security architecture must extend sufficient access control across its network, however complex, which supports overarching consent parameters. This includes the ability to revoke access and usage rights as required when consent is withdrawn by a subject. As such, regular backups and best-in-class version control must be enabled from the top down to comply with digital rights management best practices.
Audit Trail Maintenance
Organizations must ensure the presence of comprehensive audit trails which track and display how images are used, modified, and shared, irrespective of the channel(s). Accessible documentation that outlines this will demonstrate compliance while supporting security teams in the identification of potential unauthorized image use or access, which could invariably signal the beginnings of a large-scale data breach.
Technical Controls for Preserving Image Data Integrity
In addition to the core requirements listed above, organizations should consider deploying quality technical controls to ensure complete GDPR compliance and data security across the board. While these controls can be applied to digital image management, they can, in turn, support other incumbent processes and procedures, thus cultivating a greater sense of integrity and responsibility across the organization.
Data Classification and Tagging
Automated systems can classify and tag images that contain personal data, which can be implemented across an organization’s estate. Such classification systems can determine consent management and retention processes that support a company’s privacy and data protection policies.
Encryption and Access Management
Images - particularly those containing personal data - should be encrypted both in transit and at rest. Content and access management systems must enforce role-based controls using SSL/TLS encryption or another form of verified public key infrastructure (PKI), along with detailed logs of who accesses such assets, along with when and how they have been used.
Version Control and Change Management
Security teams should consider version control systems that track and timestamp modifications to images stored on internal company drives, whether cloud-based or on-premises.
For documents and image file formats that teams want to track, share, and collaborate on, a secure document management hub and software can help to keep files safe and accessible for unlimited stakeholders. These measures also ensure that organizations are compliant with centralized security throughout the asset’s life cycle.
How Does This Affect Operational Security?
Several operational security measures are essential for maintaining GDPR compliance, including Article 7.
Regular Security Assessments
Organizations should conduct periodic assessments of their image management systems, focusing on:
Vulnerability scanning of systems
Penetration testing of web interfaces used for image publication
Security configuration reviews of content management systems and image libraries
Evaluation of data loss prevention controls
Incident Response Planning
In the interests of preserving estate-wide security, security teams must integrate incident response procedures for breaches when images containing personal data are compromised. Such procedures should address:
Immediate containment of unauthorized image publication
Notification processes for affected individuals
Documentation of breach impact and remediation steps
Review and updating of security controls
Implementing Compliance Processes That Support Privacy and Efficiency Goals
It’s all well and good, stipulating the need for stringent security controls to preserve image integrity when assets are stored, managed, and distributed. But how can such stringent compliance and security measures support an organization’s digitization and upscaling journey?
The key is to implement equally scalable processes without compromising security and compliance to support an organization’s efficiency goals. This involves:
Integration with Existing Security Infrastructure
Consent management systems should align with incumbent security frameworks and tools, including (but not limited to):
Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) systems
Identity and Access Management (IAM) platforms
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) solutions
Security automation and orchestration tools
Training and Awareness
Staff upskilling and training on all processes and forthcoming updates must be enforced at a top level. Training programs should educate staff about how personal data can be derived from images, consent collection and documentation procedures, image handling etiquette, and incident reporting and response processes, to name just a few.
Future-Proofing Your Compliance Strategy
GDPR Article 7 compliance in image publication requires a sensitive and comprehensive approach that combines efficient business operations and robust security controls. Deployed solutions must preserve personal data while supporting an organization’s ability to manage and use imagery in its operations. Success in this area demands an ongoing commitment to security, privacy, and compliance, supported by appropriate technology investments and regular program reviews.
As technology evolves and regulations become more stringent, organizations must integrate and maintain an adaptable strategy which considers the impact of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI)-powered image generation, automation, advanced encryption, and compliance monitoring and reporting tools. Organizations must also be prepared for GDPR requirements and enforcement to evolve over time and ensure that security controls and processes are regularly and comprehensively reviewed and updated.
Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed in this and other guest author articles are solely those of the contributor and do not necessarily reflect those of Tripwire.
