ABAX is keeping track of data privacy

ABAX is a software-as-a-service (SaaS) company that tracks valuable data from your vehicles and machines, processing the data and making it available through a cloud vendor. Our services have developed and are more advanced than when we started with telematics in 2003.

Through all these years our internal expertise on data security and privacy has increased, and has become the highest priority within the company.

The market is more aware of privacy

After the GDPR regulation came into full force in 2018, the market's privacy-awareness increased, and at ABAX we have perceived an increased interest amongst our customers.

Blomquist has witnessed an increase in the volume of enquiries regarding GDPR and customer privacy, she believes that drivers have become more aware of their privacy rights. A natural outcome was to gather our GDPR information across our departments into one common landing page at abax.com/uk/privacy.

Employers have become familiar with the current rules and the need to set a purpose to optimise the vehicle-data. The number of requests increased and ABAX responded by employing a DPO in a full time position.

Blomquist states that she regularly attends workshops and meetings, with lawyers and others in similar roles, to debate the topic and to keep ABAX and our customers updated with privacy regulations. 

On the privacy page you will find everything you need to know about data security associated with ABAX.

Christine Blomquist, DPO

Makes the information easily accessible

Blomquist says that ABAX has created new privacy pages in the languages for its markets in: UK, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Poland, the Netherlands, and Norway. The information is designed to serve as a library for both employers and employees, where they will be able to find information on specific topics within privacy and telematics. 

The content is a result of a great collaboration across departments: IT, Product and Technology. Together with the DPO the departments have worked together to construct a common explanation of ABAX's data procedures that is easy to understand.

– We have focused on data security all these years, but now we want a greater transparency. This content is a natural development to gain transparency about privacy within ABAX for customers to be protected.

Furthermore, Blomquist explains that the content is not new but has been made readily available to make it easier for the customer to find the information themselves. We are well aware that law and GDPR can be perceived as a difficult subject for those who do not work with law on daily basis, so it will still be possible to contact the DPO for any uncertainties. 

How can the customer use this information for their employees?

– The responsibility for the data is on the customer, who must ensure correct use on setting  the purposes. This content is intended as a handy tool solving common privacy-questions. Under the tab "onboarding" you will find suggestions of information that should be given to your employees.

There is a lot of time and money saved using the ABAX-solution, to optimise and adapt our services they have to be formalised with your employees. If you are uncertain how to formulate a purpose for your employees, you can find various suggestions on the new policy pages for common purposes used by our customers today.

New customers should set the right purpose from the start. These will help an administrator to get started.

DPO

Relevant for companies of all sizes

The information is organised for all types of customers, regardless of the size of the company. This is particularly valuable when bidding for tenders to have information to hand regarding data security.

Is there a difference between what small or large businesses need to think about when it comes to privacy?

– All companies, small or large, must set a purpose before introducing control measures and the use of data. The largest companies often have a greater awareness, have more specific requests and make clear demands from us. There may be questions about storing, deleting and anonymizing of data, our larger customers also often have a legal department assisting them.

The DPO answers common questions to customer service
 

What is the manager or colleagues allowed to check , and what does the administrator have access to within the ABAX system?

– The user interface has access control, which means that an administrator will see (and have the purpose of seeing) much more than the driver. A company can set up as many administrators as they wish, but each must have a valid purpose for using the service. Access should be given based on the need of each one to perform their job.

Access to our service is dependent on several factors; such as trip- and car type. If you drive a company car on a business trip, an administrator will be able to see a lot of information, but if you drive a private trip with a private car, the administrator will not see any data. This is a good example of how privacy is implemented according to our services. 

Does the employer have to tell me if he wants to see my driving data?

– Both yes and no.The employer must communicate the reason for using the service and what type of data he intends to use for what purpose. Beyond that, the employer can view and use the data the company has intended at any time.

If the employer suspects that an employee is deceiving them with their list of working hours, it is recommended that the employer sits down with the employee to go through the lists and trips together. In this specific example when checking the lists, a purpose must have been set in advance and when the control measures were introduced.

Any questions? Take a look at our new landing page or contact our DPO, Christine Blomquist