As consumers, we want our data to remain safe and certainly out of the hands of bad actors with ill intentions. However, on the other end of the spectrum, some businesses would do just about anything to acquire more consumer data to attempt involuntary outreach to sell their products and services.
While it’s relatively easy to obtain and misuse targeted consumer information, what may materialize after this gross violation is rather unpleasant.
That’s why local and federal lawmakers and regulating bodies dedicate millions of dollars in resources and massive efforts every year to protect user data from being misused in the hands of unseasoned businesses – even more if a business has any type of presence in California.
With the implementation of the California Consumer Privacy Act, the state has embraced the privacy rights of consumers by requiring businesses to make significant changes to their data privacy and collection practices.
For Phonexa, safeguarding customer and prospect data is of paramount importance, primarily because of the multi-dimensional nature of our all-in-one platform for marketing automation that encompasses hundreds of touchpoints with client data, and of course, our firm commitment to the MailCon community.
Read on to find out more about California’s consumer protection laws and how your startup can dodge any mishaps along the way with the use of compliance technology.
What Is CCPA Compliance?
The CCPA was put in place to make California businesses more transparent in collecting and using consumer data. It also requires qualifying businesses to implement specific procedures, policies, and rules to protect the personal information of any consumer they come across.
Under CCPA regulations, businesses have to disclose the categories of personal information they collect during the information gathering process of the client’s data.
Which Organizations Must Comply With The CCPA?
If your company or startup organization falls under the scope of the following categories, then you must comply with CCPA regulations:
- Your company has an annual revenue of at least $25 million;
- If your business makes at least half or 50% of its annual revenue from selling personal information or leads of your California-based consumers;
- If your organization buys, sells, or discloses the personal information of more than 50,000 California residents in the same year (i.e., lead generation and distribution networks).
In other words, if you work in the lead generation and distribution industry, whether as part of an affiliate network or an independent contractor, your company may be subject to CCPA regulations.
Beginning in 2023, the CCPA will apply to startups and other companies that make at least 50% of their annual revenue from selling or sharing the personal information of California-based consumers.
What Do CCPA Laws Mean For Startups?
1. Consumer identifiers
2. Protected characteristics
3. Data filed under the description of “personal information” (Civ. Code § 1798.80)
4. Geolocation data
5. Commercial information
6. Biometrics
7. Information on employment
8. Information used for profiling consumers
9. Search history or other internet activity or information (cookie-collected data)
10. Education status (if private from the public)
11. Audio, visual, electronic, olfactory, or thermal information
Then, of course, comes the part where businesses and startups must inform consumers of their intent when generating the above information. The following are intent types:
1. The purpose of collecting or selling this consumer’s information;
2. The category of the personal information that you are collecting.
This information should be found in the company’s “Use of Data” section in its “Privacy Policy” document. It must be presented to the consumers before they agree to give their personal data to the company.
Since the CCPA regulatory body requires you to update this list once a year, you must also disclose whether your company has collected, sold, or disclosed any consumer personal data in the last 12 months.
While the CCPA is a win for consumers, many startups feel rather shuffled handling this added layer of compliance and regulation.
However, the way startups should see it is that this is a power shift that helps companies help themselves by evaluating the ethics of how they gather and use consumer data.
How Has Phonexa Adapted To CCPA Regulations?
Due to the robust nature of the Phonexa platform and its functionality of handling tons of consumer data per day, we’ve implemented compliance tactics and many checkpoints for errors within our platform to make sure that this data is handled ethically and with care.
For instance, Opt-Intel, our compliance and suppression list management product, allows you to secure your compliance by streamlining automated data transfers, providing compliance messages and tips, and more.
Here are several ways Opt-Intel tackles CCPA data regulations:
- Compliance Notifications: Opt-Intel keeps users in the loop on all of their compliance concerns with constant notifications and other tools that help any inconsistencies in compliance while keeping users aware of any CAN-SPAM violations.
- Opt-Out Domain White Labeling: This feature allows users to maintain email hygiene using tools and customizable options for opt-out.
- Automated, Safe Data Transfers: Transferring data to your partners is a hassle, especially if you’re working with networks, publishers, and advertisers. This tool lets you send critical data to partners without compromising consumer information.
When evaluating CCPA regulations and how they affect your startup’s operations, you must also consider how you can ensure that the consumer data you’re using and providing can be secured.
Better yet, you should focus on only collecting the consumer data of people who actually want to be contacted by your business. With that, you can use automation tools such as Opt-Intel to achieve a more harmonious and efficient manner of managing real-time opt-outs and “no contact” or email cleansing requests.
It will not only help you manage your suppression lists, but it will give you total control over your list suppression to ensure that you have a healthy list of consumer data.
Want to feel even more confident about your CCPA compliance? You can do so by using this industry-leading email solution that supports everyone across the board — from performance marketers to advertisers, networks, and large agencies.
In a way, Opt-Intel is the solution many in the email industry have been looking for — it’s the extension of Phonexa’s commitment and support of users of E-Delivery, our email and SMS product, as well as the MailCon community of email and omnichannel marketers who are always on the lookout for best practices to guide them toward a better relationship with any new CCPA updates or general CCPA compliance requirements.
Contact us to learn more about how Opt-Intel can power your startup’s next stage of compliance.
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