Table of Contents
In Short
- Gaming platforms must meet UK GDPR obligations, including securing user data, being transparent about data use, and enabling user rights.
- Platforms accessed by children face stricter rules, like providing child-friendly privacy notices and limiting behavioural profiling by default.
- Breaches can result in fines up to £17.5M or 4% of global turnover and damage reputations.
Tips for Businesses
Conduct a data mapping exercise to understand data flows and identify risks. Use privacy-by-design principles to embed compliance into your platform. Ensure clear privacy policies, robust security measures, and age-appropriate settings for child users. Regularly review data protection practices and seek legal advice to navigate complex GDPR requirements confidently.
The gaming industry is creative and exciting, with fast developments and technological innovation influencing the market and giving businesses in this space the opportunity for rapid growth. However, companies operating in this industry face increasing scrutiny over their use of personal data. Under UK GDPR rules, gaming platforms acting as data controllers have numerous obligations to safeguard user data. When their services are likely to be accessed by children, platforms must comply with strict additional legal obligations. This article will explore some key data protection compliance considerations for gaming platforms acting as data controllers when processing user data.
What are Key Data Protection Obligations for Gaming Platforms?
Gaming platforms (particularly mobile apps) often collect a wide range of personal data, such as players’ contact details, location data, social media profiles, photographs, and gaming or spending habits.
Understanding your platform’s data collection and flows is critical as a first step for compliance. You can achieve this by carrying out a data mapping exercise to understand how your business collects, stores, and shares personal data.
Common Considerations
However, these are some common considerations for gaming platforms operating and processing personal data as data controllers:
- platforms must establish a lawful basis for processing personal data (such as fulfilling a contract, pursuing legitimate business interests, or obtaining user consent). Consent must be freely given, informed, specific, and unambiguous, meeting the high UK GDPR threshold. Platforms must allow users to withdraw consent easily, which can be done through tools such as in-game settings or account dashboards. Platforms must keep clear records of when and how they obtained consent to demonstrate compliance. However, consent can be a challenging lawful basis to rely upon, and you should carefully consider whether it is appropriate in the circumstances;
- transparency is a fundamental principle of UK GDPR and vital for a gaming platform. Platforms must clearly explain to users what data they collect, how it will be used, and who will access it. Privacy policies should be clear, accessible, and presented at key points of data collection, such as account creation;
- gaming platforms must carry out Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs) for high-risk processing activities. DPIAs identify risks and ensure safeguards are in place; and
- platforms must be able to facilitate data subject rights (such as access or deletion requests) and design systems to handle these without disrupting other users’ experiences.
Additional Considerations
Some additional considerations include:
- data management is key, particularly given the high volumes of data a platform may process. Gaming platforms must clearly define data retention periods and securely delete player data that is no longer required; and
- platforms offering services to children need to comply with additional legal rules (which can be complex, broad and challenging in practice) such as providing child friendly privacy information. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has issued detailed guidance for game designers, particularly in light of the Children’s Code.
Platforms should seek legal advice for a full understanding of their specific compliance obligations. This will be based on the way they use personal data in practice.
How Should Gaming Platforms Secure User Data?
Strong security measures are crucial for protecting user data, particularly given the large volumes of player information a game will typically use. Platforms should access which measures are best placed to protect users. They can use various tools to safeguard data during transmission and storage.
Gaming platforms can restrict access to personal data to employees, contractors, and agents who need it for business purposes but otherwise carefully safeguard data. Any individuals privy to personal data should follow strict instructions and confidentiality obligations to help protect it from risk.
Platforms should also implement clear processes and procedures for preventing and managing security incidents. Regular security audits and penetration testing help identify and address vulnerabilities, and staff training on data security can also help prevent risk.
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What Should Platforms Know About Cross-Border Data Transfers?
A number of gaming platforms operate globally and may therefore transfer data internationally (such as hosting data on servers outside the UK).
UK GDPR requires additional safeguards for such transfers in certain scenarios. Where necessary, platforms should use mechanisms such as the International Data Transfer Agreement or the UK Addendum to Standard Contractual Clauses and carry out transfer risk assessments to ensure data is adequately protected and complies with international data transfer rules. Platforms should inform users about international data transfers and explain the safeguards in place, such as the legal mechanisms used.
What Happens If Gaming Platforms Do Not Comply?
Non-compliance with the UK GDPR can result in significant penalties, including fines of up to £17.5 million or 4% of global turnover (whichever is higher). In addition, breaches can damage business reputations and reduce user trust. As such, it is vital to prioritise compliance. This is especially true for large gaming platforms with a large user base and operating in the public eye.
Gaming platforms can mitigate these risks by focusing on compliance and embedding privacy-by-design principles into their operations. Regularly reviewing and updating data protection practices over time is also key to ensuring ongoing compliance and reducing risk.
This factsheet sets out how your business can become GDPR compliant.
Key Takeaways
Gaming platforms often process large volumes of user data. They must prioritise UK GDPR compliance to protect such data, prevent risk, and maintain trust. As a controller, a gaming platform will have a number of key obligations, compliance with which is mandatory. For specific advice on what a gaming platform needs to do to comply, it is important to seek legal advice from a data protection solicitor and implement the correct steps.
If you need help understanding which UK GDPR compliance actions your gaming business needs to take, our experienced data, privacy and IT lawyers can assist as part of our LegalVision membership. For a low monthly fee, you will have unlimited access to lawyers to answer your questions and draft and review your documents. Call us today on 0808 196 8584 or visit our membership page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Gaming platforms collect various types of personal data, which could include player contact details, geolocation, and in-game behaviour. They must comply with UK GDPR to ensure this data is handled securely and transparently.
Non-compliance with UK GDPR can result in fines of up to £17.5 million or 4% of global turnover.
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