A personal data retention procedure sets out how long your organization keeps data and when it deletes it. Without one, you risk financial penalties, data breaches and noncompliance with the GDPR. This guide explains what the procedure should include, who is responsible for it and how to implement it.
In the previous article, I discussed how to handle the rights of data subjects. Today we turn to retention, meaning the management of the personal data lifecycle within an organization.
What is a personal data retention procedure?
A personal data retention procedure is a document that sets out the rules for storing and deleting personal data within an organization. It is part of compliance with the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and helps ensure that personal data is processed only for as long as necessary to achieve the purposes of processing.
What is a retention procedure for?
- Setting retention periods: it establishes how long different categories of personal data may be kept, in line with legal requirements or the organization’s needs.
- GDPR compliance: it supports compliance with the storage limitation principle (Article 5(1)(e) of the GDPR).
- Reducing the risk of violations: regularly deleting unnecessary data reduces the risk of a breach, unauthorized access or other personal data violations.
- Optimizing resources: deleting unnecessary data helps the organization manage resources more efficiently, such as disk space and archives.
- Making processes transparent: clear rules for storing and deleting data build trust among clients, employees and other data subjects.
- Managing the risk of financial penalties: it helps avoid consequences associated with keeping data longer than permitted.
What should a retention procedure include?
- Processing purposes and legal bases: why the data is collected and the legal bases for processing it.
- Categories of personal data: the types of data covered by retention, such as employee or client data.
- Retention periods: specific periods for different types of data, for example:
- accounting data: 5 years (under accounting regulations),
- employee data: 10 years (under employment regulations),
- marketing data: until the individual withdraws consent.
- Criteria for setting retention periods: the basis for each period, such as legal requirements or business needs.
- Data deletion rules: how data will be deleted or anonymized when its retention period expires.
- Retention review and monitoring process: how often and how data will be reviewed to determine whether it can be deleted.
- Responsibilities: the people or departments responsible for monitoring retention and deleting data.
- Technical and organizational measures: the methods used to delete data, for example:
- permanent deletion from databases,
- physical destruction of paper documents,
- data anonymization.
How do you implement and maintain a retention procedure?
- Draft and implement it: create the procedure and apply it to all data processing activities.
- Communicate it to employees: all employees responsible for processing data should know the retention rules.
- Monitor compliance: regularly check whether data is deleted according to the specified deadlines.
- Update it: update the procedure when legal requirements or organizational processes change.
- Review data: periodically review data sets to identify information that should be deleted.
- Use supporting tools: use IT systems that automate retention processes, such as automatically deleting data after a set period.
- Document data deletion: keep a record of deleted data as evidence that the procedure is being followed.
Who must follow a retention procedure?
All personal data controllers and data processors must follow a retention procedure, regardless of the organization’s size. This applies in particular to:
- businesses,
- public institutions,
- organizations that process large volumes of personal data.
Who oversees data retention in an organization?
Appoint people in each organization to monitor compliance with retention rules. They are most often:
- Personal Data Controllers (ADO): responsible for overseeing implementation of the procedure.
- Data Protection Officer (IOD): in organizations that have one, provides advice and oversight on data protection.
- Operational departments, such as HR, IT and marketing: responsible for following the procedure in their areas, including deleting data that is no longer needed on time.
How is AI changing personal data retention?
Artificial intelligence can improve data retention management in several ways:
- Automatically identifying data for deletion: algorithms analyze data and flag information that has passed its retention period.
- Risk analysis: AI systems analyze risks associated with storing data and suggest ways to reduce the risk of violations.
- Automated deletion and anonymization: together with automated deletion technologies, AI supports organizations in maintaining GDPR compliance and optimizing data storage processes.
If you process large volumes of data, consider using AI tools to automate retention. You can save time and reduce the risk of human error.
Summary
A personal data retention procedure is a tool for managing the lifecycle of personal data. It sets out how long data is kept and when and how it should be deleted. Its purpose is to support compliance with the GDPR, optimize organizational processes and reduce risks associated with data processing. Regularly applying and updating the procedure helps organizations manage personal data effectively and protect the rights of data subjects.
Q&A: Personal data retention procedure
Who implements a personal data retention procedure?
The company’s management board or a designated department or Data Protection Officer (IOD), possibly together with other people responsible for data management in the organization.
Where should you keep a personal data retention procedure?
In a document management system, a central repository of data protection policies or a paper copy in the department responsible for data management.
How should you make a personal data retention procedure available?
Through the internal intranet, document management system, email or employee training, with access limited to people responsible for following the retention rules.
Which data should be deleted?
Personal data that is no longer needed for the purposes for which it was collected, or that has passed its specified retention period.
Who is responsible for overseeing the retention procedure?
The management board or a designated Data Protection Officer (IOD) is responsible for overseeing the procedure in the organization.
How long should personal data be kept?
The retention period depends on the purpose of processing, legal requirements and the organization’s internal rules.
What should you do if data must be deleted but is stored on paper?
Paper documents should be destroyed with a shredder or by another method that ensures their permanent destruction.
Can AI help manage data retention?
Yes. Artificial intelligence can support automated data deletion based on defined criteria, improving the retention process and ensuring GDPR compliance.
