The complete guide to GDPR email disclaimers

Email disclaimers have become a necessary part of business communication, especially since the implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in 2018. These disclaimers are important for protecting both businesses and individuals, as they outline how personal data is collected, stored, and used within email communications.

In this guide, we will delve into the world of GDPR email disclaimers, covering everything from their purpose to best practices for creating them. So whether you're new to GDPR or just looking to improve your current disclaimer, read on for all you need to know.

What is GDPR? 

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is one of the most important privacy laws in the world. Officially known as GDPR 2016/679, this European Union (EU) regulation came into effect on May 25, 2018. It’s widely recognized as the most comprehensive data privacy law, impacting any company that processes personal data of EU or European Economic Area (EEA) citizens, no matter where the company is located.

Before GDPR, Europe’s data privacy landscape was fragmented with individual laws in each of the 27 EU member states. GDPR streamlined these rules, creating a standardized framework to protect personal information, improve individual privacy rights, and ensure businesses are held accountable for data breaches.

The regulation comes with teeth: businesses that fail to comply could face fines of up to 20 million EUR or 4% of their global revenue, whichever is higher. These hefty penalties make GDPR compliance a top priority for companies worldwide.

In its first year alone, there were 144,376 GDPR complaints from individuals who felt their privacy was violated. One of the most notable fines occurred in January 2019 when Google was fined 50 million EUR by French regulators for failing to properly inform users about how their data was being used for targeted ads.

GDPR remains a critical regulation for businesses and individuals, setting the global standard for data privacy and security. Understanding GDPR requirements and ensuring compliance is essential for protecting customer trust and avoiding severe fines.

Why you need a GDPR email disclaimer

A GDPR email disclaimer is an essential component of ensuring your business complies with data protection laws while building trust with your email recipients. While GDPR doesn’t specifically mandate email disclaimers like other regulations such as HIPAA or CASL, it’s still a good practice to include one in your emails.

Adding a GDPR-compliant email disclaimer reassures recipients that your company takes data privacy seriously. It’s also an excellent way to state your commitment to GDPR compliance. By adding simple text and linking to your privacy policy, you can demonstrate the steps your organization has taken to process personal data in accordance with the law. Remember, your privacy policy should be written in plain language so recipients can easily understand how their data is handled.

The benefits of adding an unsubscribe link

Including an unsubscribe link in your GDPR email disclaimer makes it easy for recipients to opt out of future communications, which is a key requirement for GDPR compliance. This is especially important for companies operating in B2C industries, where consent plays a significant role in email marketing.

However, be cautious about where you include an unsubscribe link. For example, it’s not necessary to add one to emails where consent is implied, such as:

• Responding to a customer’s request for information or a quote.

• Sending transactional emails related to warranties, safety information, memberships, loans, or account details.

• Communicating employment information or details about employee benefit plans.

Adding an unsubscribe link to these types of emails can confuse recipients, leading them to believe they’ve been subscribed to marketing communications without consent. This could result in GDPR violation complaints or cause recipients to miss out on critical transactional information.

Here are 5 top examples of GDPR email disclaimers. 

Creating your new GDPR email disclaimer 

You can add your GDPR email disclaimer directly into your employees’ email client such as Outlook or Gmail. It’s quick and easy-to-do. However, if you want to ensure everyone in your company is using the same disclaimer text, this becomes more difficult. 

You’re going to have to rely on each user copying and pasting the content into their email client. On the other hand, you may have to ask your IT department to visit everyone’s desk individually. Even after all that, there’s no guarantee people won’t delete the disclaimer or modify the text. 

Instead, many companies opt to “stamp” every email with an appropriate disclaimer. They do this by using Transport Rules in Office 365 (Microsoft 365) and Microsoft Exchange Server or the Append Footer setting in Google Workspace. This means that after someone sends an email, the text is automatically added. 

With this setup, the GDPR disclaimer is automatically added to all emails after they’re sent, ensuring consistency. However, be aware that these disclaimers can stack at the bottom of email threads, cluttering conversations. This could lead to extra work for your IT team when managing and maintaining clean email formats.

An automated email disclaimer solution saves time and ensures compliance, making it the preferred choice for businesses looking to streamline their processes while adhering to GDPR requirements.

Centrally managing GDPR email disclaimers with Exclaimer

So, what’s the best way to easily manage a GDRR email disclaimer without causing your IT department undue stress? 

Email signature software from Exclaimer gives all users the most consistent, professional and legally compliant email disclaimers. That includes emails sent from mobiles, Macs and automated CRM systems. 

• Get total control over GDPR email disclaimers. 

• Automatically place email disclaimers on all outgoing messages. 

• Create specific versions for replies and internal purposes. 

• Make massive cost savings by reducing the load on staff. 

• Apply disclaimer updates instantly with a single click. 

Learn more about Exclaimer or get yourself a free trial today to start centrally managing your GDPR email disclaimers.