Data Security in Parking Apps: What You Need to Know3 min read
Parking causes 30% of all city congestion. Parking apps for commercial fleets and individual drivers make it easier to discover, pay for, and track parking. Here’s how parking apps collect vehicle data and the importance of data security in parking.
Parking apps are unique since they require crowd-sourced data about parking place availability and driver data. Every day, parking equipment collects gargantuan amounts of data in the form of license plate numbers, parkers’ payment details, contact information, etc.
Today, such data generally comes from different sources:
- Sensors in parking places and/or security cameras provide crowd-sourced data.
- Connected car sensor data improves accuracy, driver convenience, and integration.
Car data helps parking applications in the following ways:
- Real-time parking information and predictive algorithms using historical data help drivers find open places.
- Give drivers more parking information so they can choose a location that fits their vehicle and preferences.
- Car location-based personalization
- Monitoring and optimization of fleet parking costs.
The information collected through apps like these can cause serious security breaches if it falls into the wrong hands, especially since it contains vital personal information that belongs to the parkers, including the locations they frequent.
GDPR and its Importance for Data Security in Parking Apps
GDPR is the abbreviation for General Data Protection Regulation. In 2012, the EU decided to update its data protection legislation for the digital age. The regulation gives Europeans more control over their personal data. It is about securely keeping data, guaranteeing privacy, and getting explicit consent for data use.
GDPR was finally implemented in May 2018.
GDPR urges all companies that interact with citizens of the EU to follow four guiding principles:
- Data minimization
- Accuracy
- Storage limitation
- Integrity and confidentiality
Companies must legally acquire, protect, and prevent data misuse. Every EU organization must comply, as must non-EU organizations with EU customers and clients.
Names, addresses, photos, IP addresses, and genetic and biometric data are sensitive. Organizations will be required to manage data more carefully, and citizens will be notified in case their data has been compromised.
In case of a breach, the responsible organization may have to endure fines of up to USD 11.03 million or 2% of annual company turnover – whichever is higher.
Large data handlers must hire a DPO (Data Protection Officer) to ensure compliance. Failure to do so may result in a non-compliance charge.
Also Read: Parking Data Holds the Key to Reducing Congestion
The GMP Platform has Security and Compliance at its Core
Get My Parking’s smart parking solutions have cloud-encrypted data infrastructure that is GDPR-compliant and audited by KPMG. We have secure systems in place that ensure that your parkers’ data is stored safely and away from the wrong hands. We’re also ISO 9001-certified!
Parking operators can control who has access to all the different modules on our user-friendly and powerful admin dashboard. These permissions are granted hierarchically at a company level, making it easier for operators to define roles within their company.
With a customized parking app of their own, operators can upgrade their parking business to become future-proof and parker-friendly. Take a look at our complete suite of intelligent parking solutions that can digitize parking lots at pocket-friendly prices!
